BANKING SERVICE RECRUITMENT BOARD MADRAS Vs. V RAMALINGAM

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal is filed by the Banking Service Recruitment Board, Madras. It pertains to the recruitments made, inter alia, to the post of Co-operative Officers in Indian Bank and Indian Overseas Bank pursuant to an advertisement issued in July, 1979. The advertisement pertains to several posts. The relevant posts for the present purpose are ten posts of Co-operative Officers in Indian Overseas Bank. As per the advertisement, the candidates applying for all the posts so advertised would be called for a written examination which would be both objective and descriptive. Candidates who were ranked sufficiently high on the basis of their marks in the written examination will be called for interview. The final selection will be on the basis of the aggregate marks obtained by the candidate in the preliminary examination and interview and will be strictly according to merit.

(2.) Accordingly on 9-12-1979, the written examination was conducted through an independent agency namely, the National Institute of Bank Management which was then in existence. Candidates were examined in four papers namely, 1) Test of Proficiency 2) Test of English Language 3) Test of quantitative Aptitude and 4) Test of Reasoning. For the examination in each paper, minimum cut-off marks were fixed. Those who obtained marks above the cut-off marks were put in a list of qualified candidates. Out of this list those who had secured high ranks were called for an interview. The interviews were held thereafter and by July, 1980 all the appointments were made.

(3.) The first respondent who had not qualified in the written test and who was not called for an interview thereafter filed a writ petition. He challenged the system of fixing of cut-off marks. The learned single Judge of the High Court upheld this contention on the ground that for each paper, different cut-off marks were fixed. It was pointed out by the appellants before the learned single Judge that the first respondent was not called for an interview since he had obtained marks below the cut-off level in one of the papers. The learned single Judge, however, set aside the system of fixing cut-off marks as arbitrary or irregular.