KERALA PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION Vs. STATE DISABILITY COMMISSIONER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Aggrieved by an Order passed by the State Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities, Kerala, the Kerala Public Services Commission has approached this Court invoking Article 226 of the Constitution of India.

(2.) The 2nd respondent, who is a person with disability (hearing impaired), applied for appointment to the post of Legal Assistant Grade-II in the Law Department, Government Secretariat, in response to a notification issued by the Kerala Public Service Commission. The petitioner's name was included in the additional rank list as No.2 for the hearing impaired candidates. The 2nd respondent filed OP(RPWD) No.564/S3/2020 before the State Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities, Kerala alleging that the Kerala PSC is not heeding to judgments which directed to fill up backlog vacancies for the differently abled persons, in the matter of appointment to the posts of Legal Assistants.

(3.) Before the Commissioner, the Kerala PSC submitted that as per GO dtd. 3/3/2011 the post of Legal Assistant was identified as fit to be filled up by Persons with Low Vision and Persons with Locomotor Disability. Original Rank List published included only the said two categories. By GO dtd. 26/11/2018, the Government included the category of Hearing Impaired also as fit for appointment. Hence, the Kerala PSC issued addendum notification dtd. 4/12/2019 including candidates with hearing impairment also. The petitioner was Rank No.2 in the supplementary list. The candidate at Rank No.1 was given appointment as Legal Assistant. From the entire rank lists, 44 candidates were appointed. As the next turn for Hearing Impaired did not reach, the petitioner was not appointed. The validity of the Rank List expired on 24/9/2020, before reaching the next turn.