JPSC row: Jharkhand HC stays cancellation of Civil Services, Food Safety Officer recruitments

The Jharkhand High Court has halted the state government’s decision to cancel the 11th to 13th JPSC Civil Services examinations and Food Safety Officer recruitment, providing relief to candidates whose selections and appointments were affected.

The court’s intervention follows the state government’s Aug 18 decision to cancel 22 recruitment examinations amid allegations of irregularities in government hiring tests. The government had also put six examinations on hold and ordered a CID investigation into 17 earlier examinations.

The High Court has sought responses from the Jharkhand government and the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC). The matter has been listed for further hearing on Sept 15.

The order is particularly significant for candidates who had already cleared the affected examinations and, in some cases, joined government departments following their selection.

The government’s decision came after weeks of protests by JPSC and JSSC aspirants in Ranchi over alleged irregularities in recruitment examinations. The agitation, which began around July 29, continued for 26 days.

Protesters had demanded an impartial investigation into alleged malpractice, particularly in the JSSC Combined Graduate Level (CGL) examination and tests conducted through outsourced agency TSR Data Processing Pvt Ltd (TDPL).

The agitation intensified in August, when candidates planned a Tiranga March and a gherao of the Jharkhand Assembly on Aug 10. The resulting confrontation between protesters and police further heightened tensions.

Several aspirants had also gone on hunger strike during the agitation. Three protesters, Rupesh Kumar Pal, Savita Kumari and Rahul Kranti, ended their 15-day fast on Aug 19 after the state announced the examination cancellations and related measures.

On Aug 18, the Hemant Soren-led government issued notifications cancelling 22 recruitment examinations conducted between 2023 and 2026.

Reports said 19 of the cancelled examinations were connected to complaints involving JPSC and TDPL. Two other examinations were cancelled because they had been partly conducted by TDPL or other agencies facing scrutiny.

The affected examinations included the JSSC CGL, 11th to 13th JPSC Civil Services, 14th JPSC Civil Services, Food Safety Officer and Child Development Project Officer (CDPO) recruitments, among others.

As part of the broader action, the state also ordered verification of agencies involved in six examinations that were put on hold. It directed a CID probe into 17 examinations advertised between 2010 and 2022.

The government further proposed seeking a fast-track court in the Jharkhand High Court for cases related to alleged JPSC and JSSC irregularities. It also announced an internal monitoring cell for the two recruiting bodies and constituted a committee headed by IAS officer Amitabh Kaushal to examine examination reforms.

The measures temporarily brought the aspirants’ agitation to an end, with protest leaders agreeing to suspend the movement for two months while allowing the government time to conduct an investigation.

The cancellation, however, led to a fresh protest by candidates who had already cleared some of the examinations. Some selected candidates had already received appointments and joined government service, putting their positions at risk.

The issue was particularly significant for candidates selected through the 11th to 13th JPSC Civil Services examinations, who had already entered government service.

On August 20, the High Court stayed the cancellation of the 11th to 13th JPSC Civil Services examinations and related appointments, along with the Food Safety Officer recruitment.

The court directed that selected candidates be reinstated, observing that they could not be removed without following due process and principles of natural justice.

The order provides temporary relief to affected candidates while the court considers the state government’s decision and the circumstances surrounding the cancelled recruitments.