THE HON'BLE SRI JUSTICE ABHINAND KUMAR SHAVILI
AND
THE HON'BLE SRI JUSTICE ANIL KUMAR JUKANTI
WRIT APPEAL Nos.910, 912 and 925 OF 2023
COMMON JUDGMENT: (Per Hon'ble Sri Justice Abhinand Kumar Shavili)
All these Writ Appeals are being disposed of by
way of this common judgment, since the issue involved
in all the Writ Appeals is one and the same.
2. Heard Sri Goda Shiva, learned Senior Counsel
representing Smt. Goda Ramalakshmi, counsel for the
appellants on record in W.A.No.910 of 2023, Sri
G.Vidya Sagar, learned Senior Counsel representing
Sri G.S.Prasen, counsel for the appellants on record in
W.A.No.912 of 2023, Sri P.Sri Harsha Reddy, learned
counsel for appellants in W.A.No.925 of 2023,
Sri D.Y.L.N.Charyulu, learned counsel for the 1st
respondent and Sri B.A.Prakash Reddy, learned
counsel for the 2nd respondent in all the Writ Appeals.
2 AKS, J & JAK, J WAs_910, 912 & 925_2023
3. For the sake of convenience, the facts in Writ Appeal No.910 of 2023 are discussed hereunder.
4. Writ Appeal No.910 of 2023 is filed by the appellants aggrieved by the orders passed by a learned Single Judge of this Court in Writ Petition No.36031 of 2022, dated 28.08.2023.
5. It has been contended by the appellants that the official respondents have issued a Notification No.2 of 2022, dated 17.06.2022, calling for applications for the post of Junior Assistant Grade-II and in all 177 posts were notified. As per the said notification, the selection process consists of a written test of 120 objective type questions and certain minimum marks were set out for OCs, BCs, SCs and STs. The written examination was conducted on 04.09.2022. The learned counsel for the appellants has contended that the official respondents have entrusted the job of conducting the examination to Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University (JNTU), Hyderabad and the respondents/writ petitioners have 3 AKS, J & JAK, J WAs_910, 912 & 925_2023 also responded to the said notification. However, the respondents/writ petitioners could not come up within the zone of selection. The 1st respondent/writ petitioner having participated in the selection process has earlier filed W.P.No.34094 of 2022 seeking a Writ of Mandamus to direct the official respondents to conduct examination by issuing question paper, OMR sheet and by releasing the key in the examination to be held on 04.09.2022 and the learned single Judge of this Court was pleased to dispose of the said Writ Petition, vide orders, dated 01.09.2022, by directing the official respondents to allow the 1st respondent/ writ petitioner and other candidates who attended the examination to take out the question paper booklet and hall ticket and also directed the official respondents to release the key within a period of one week from the date of examination so as to enable the 1st respondent/writ petitioner and other candidates to assess their performance in the examination.
4 AKS, J & JAK, J WAs_910, 912 & 925_2023 Thereafter, the official respondents have published the key and results of the said examination. In the said examination, the 1st respondent/writ petitioner has not even qualified. Aggrieved by the same, the 1st respondent/writ petitioner has once again approached this Court by filing W.P.No.36031 of 2022 contending that there were large scale irregularities and malpractices in the conduct of examination by the official respondents and the question paper was leaked and in the examination, some of the candidates have mentioned their names as Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Degree and Board of Secondary Education etc. which would mean that the official respondents, without examining the applications submitted by the candidates, have mechanically allowed the candidates to participate in the selection process and the official respondents, without publishing the preliminary key and without examining the objections received from the candidates, have published the results along with 5 AKS, J & JAK, J WAs_910, 912 & 925_2023 final key. No opportunity was given to the 1st respondent/writ petitioner and other candidates to ascertain whether the final key which was published is in accordance with the experts opinion and whether the objections raised by certain candidates were taken into account or not.
6. The learned counsel for the appellants had contended that the 2nd respondent herein got impleaded as petitioner No.2 in W.P.No.36031 of 2022, vide orders, dated 11.05.2023, in I.A.No.5 of 2022 in the said Writ Petition. The 2nd respondent herein could not have been impleaded as a writ petitioner and the learned Single Judge has mechanically allowed the I.A. by impleading the 2nd respondent herein. The learned Single Judge has allowed W.P.No.36031 of 2022 preferred by the respondents/writ petitioners and cancelled the entire selection process by setting aside the examination held on 04.09.2022 and also consequential results declared and further directed the 6 AKS, J & JAK, J WAs_910, 912 & 925_2023 official respondents to re-conduct the examination by following strict measures and taking all due care and by publishing final key after considering the objections, if any, to the provisional key.
7. The learned counsel for the appellants had further contended that the 1st respondent/writ petitioner has filed W.P.No.36031 of 2022 seeking a Writ of Mandamus by directing the respondents No.4 and 5 to conduct an independent enquiry against the malpractices and illegalities committed in the Recruitment examination held on 04.09.2022 for the post of Junior Assistant Grade-2, conducted by the respondent No.7, and take necessary action against the persons who indulged in the said malpractices including the officials who have given their hand in leakage of question paper and to commit illegalities and consequently set aside the examination held on 04.09.2022, conducted by the respondent No.7 and declare it as illegal, and pass such other order or 7 AKS, J & JAK, J WAs_910, 912 & 925_2023 orders as this Hon'ble Court may deem fit and proper in the circumstances of the case. The respondents/ writ petitioners wanted an independent enquiry to be conducted against the malpractices and irregularities in the examination which was held on 04.09.2022.
8. The learned counsel for the appellants had also contended that the official respondents have filed a counter affidavit in W.P.No.36031 of 2023 contending that objections were received from certain candidates and the same was referred to an Expert Committee and only after taking an opinion from the Expert Committee, the final key was published along with the results. Therefore, the contentions of the respondents /writ petitioners were totally incorrect except making a false statement about the malpractices and irregularities. The respondents/writ petitioners could not produce any material before the learned Single Judge and the learned Single Judge has mechanically 8 AKS, J & JAK, J WAs_910, 912 & 925_2023 allowed the Writ Petition No.36031 of 2022 and granted relief.
9. The learned counsel for the appellants had further contended that the appellants have participated in the selection process and the appellants are waiting for consideration to be appointed as Junior Assistant Grade-II. Without there being any material that malpractices and serious irregularities have taken place, the learned Single Judge was not justified in setting aside the entire examination. The entire examination could not have been set aside on the instance of the respondents/writ petitioners who have participated and not even qualified in the examination. Therefore, appropriate orders be passed in the Writ Appeal by setting aside the orders passed by the learned Single Judge in W.P.No.36031 of 2022, dated 28.08.2023 and allow the Writ Appeal.
9 AKS, J & JAK, J WAs_910, 912 & 925_2023
10. The learned counsel for the respondents/writ petitioners had contended that the question paper was leaked and certain candidates were beneficiaries of such irregularity and large scale malpractices have also occurred and the 1st respondent/writ petitioner has given complaint, but the authorities are not accepting his complaint. The results of some of the candidates were published with names as Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Degree and Board of Secondary Education etc. which would mean that the official respondents have not taken care to check whether such bogus candidates have written the examination and the official respondents have also permitted the candidates who are styling themselves as Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Degree and Board of Secondary Education etc. in the examination which demonstrated that the examination was conducted in a careless manner and with lot of irregularities and malpractices. The 1st respondent/writ petitioner has submitted a 10 AKS, J & JAK, J WAs_910, 912 & 925_2023 representation to conduct a detailed enquiry and take appropriate decision, but the official respondents have not acted upon the representation made by him.
11. The learned counsel for the respondents/writ petitioners had further contended that no prejudice will cause to anyone, if the examination is conducted afresh. Therefore, the learned Single Judge is justified in allowing the W.P.No.36031 of 2022 preferred by the respondents/writ petitioners by setting aside the entire examination as admittedly there were large scale irregularities and malpractices in the conduct of examination. There are no merits in the Writ Appeal and is liable to be dismissed.
12. This Court, having considered the rival submissions made by the parties, is of the view that the learned Single Judge was not justified in setting aside the written examination which was held on 04.09.2022 on the ground that there were large scale irregularities and malpractices as no material was 11 AKS, J & JAK, J WAs_910, 912 & 925_2023 placed before the learned Single Judge to demonstrate that there were large scale irregularities and malpractices in the conduct of examination. So far as the candidates who have appeared with the name of Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Degree and Board of Secondary Education etc., we are informed by the learned counsel for the appellants that those candidates have not qualified in the examination. Some of the candidates could have entered their names as Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Degree and Board of Secondary Education etc. and that does not mean that the entire examination has to be held back and if some of the candidates have filled up the online applications with an erroneous name such as referred supra, that will not vitiate the entire examination. Therefore, the learned Single Judge was not justified in setting aside the entire written examination only on the apprehension of the respondents/writ petitioners that there were large scale irregularities and 12 AKS, J & JAK, J WAs_910, 912 & 925_2023 malpractices. Therefore, the orders passed by the learned Single Judge in W.P.No.36031 of 2022, dated 28.08.2023, are liable to be set aside and accordingly set aside. The official respondents are directed to go ahead with the selection process based upon the written examination conducted on 04.09.2022. However, it is made clear that if any irregularities or malpractices are noticed by the official respondents or by any other investigating agencies, the entire selection process is liable to be set aside because no selections can be made on the ground of irregularities and malpractices. It is always open for the respondents/ writ petitioners to pursue their remedies in accordance with law to establish that there were large scale irregularities or malpractices in the written examination which was held on 04.09.2022 in pursuance to the Notification No.2 of 2022, dated 17.06.2022.
13 AKS, J & JAK, J WAs_910, 912 & 925_2023
13. With these observations, all these Writ Appeals are disposed of. There shall be no order as to costs.
Miscellaneous Petitions, if any, pending in these Writ Appeals shall stand closed.
_________________________________ ABHINAND KUMAR SHAVILI, J ___________________________ ANIL KUMAR JUKANTI, J Date: 21.09.2023.
Note: C.C. in three (3) days.
B/o.
KRR/ISN