JEEVANANDAN Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) (Order of the Court was made by R.Jayasimha Babu, J.) The petitioner was an aspirant for appointment by selection to the Indian Administrative Service under the non-civil service quota which is fifteen per cent of one-third of the strength of the service, two third of the service being recruited directly after competitive examinations followed by interviews by the Union Public Service Commission, and 85 per cent of one-third being recruited by way of promotion from among those in the State Civil Services.

(2.) Recruitment by promotion or selection to the Indian Administrative Service is governed by Rule 8 of the Indian Administrative Service (Recruitment) Rules, 1954. Rule 8 provides for recruitment by promotion or selection by appointment to State and Joint Cadre. Rule 9 prescribes the number of persons to be recruited under Rule 8. Eligibility, mode of selection and appointment to the service, against the selection quota from among persons "....of outstanding ability and merit serving in connection with the affairs of the State who is not a member of the State Civil Service of that State who holds gazetted post in a substantive capacity" are dealt with in Regulation 3 of the Indian Administrative Service (Appointment by Selection) Regulations, 1956, and which reads as under : Rule 3. Eligibility, mode of selection and appointment to the service:-- (1) In accordance with the provisions contained in sub-rule (2) of Rule 8 of the Recruitment Rules, the State Government may, from time to time, consider the cases of persons not belonging to the State Civil Service but serving in connection with the affairs of the State or States in the case of Joint Cadres who -- (i) are of outstanding merit and ability; and (ii) have completed not less than 12 years of continuous service in a gazetted post under the State Government or in the case of joint Cadre, under any one of the State Governments constituting the Joint Cadre, holding that post in a substantive capacity and propose the names of others suitable for appointment to the service : (Provided that the State Government shall not ordinarily consider the cases of persons who have attained the age of 52 years. Note:-- The conditions regarding length of service and age referred to in the sub-regulation (1) shall be determined with reference to the (1st day of April of the year in which the case of the persons are considered : (Provided further that the number of officers proposed for the consideration of the Selection Committee under sub-regulation (2) shall not exceed five times the number of vacancies to be filled in during the following year. (2) The Selection Committee set up in accordance with Regulation 3 of the Indian Administrative Service (Appointment by Promotion) Regulations, 1953, shall consider the proposals of the State Government made in sub-regulation (1) and recommended the names of such of these officers, if any, but not exceeding the number of vacancies sought to be filled up by the State Government concerned under these regulations during the next 12 months, as are in their opinion, suitable for appointment to the Service. (2-A) The suitability of a person for appointment to the service shall be determined by a scrutiny of his confidential roll and by interviewing him. (3) The recommendations of the Selection Committee made under sub-regulation (2) shall be placed before the State Government concerned and the latter, shall forward those recommendations to the commission for approval along with --

(3.) The Regulation does not prescribe the extent of weightage to be given to the interview. In the affidavit filed by the Under Secretary to the Union Public Service Commission in this Court, it has been stated at paragraph 13 thus: