ASHUTOSH KUMAR VINAYAK Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) BOTH the appeals filed by the appelants are directed against the order dated 17.8.1999 passed by a learned Single Judge of this Court in CWJC No. 9138 of 1998 by which the prayer made on behalf of the appellants to fill up 123 posts of Assistant Public Prosecutor (hereinafter referred to as the APP) from the panel prepared by the Bihar Public Service Commission(hereinafter referred to as the Commission) pursuant to Advertisement Nos. 1 and 2 of 1996 has been rejected.

(2.) AS the same order has been challenged in both the appeals, they have been heard together and are being disposed of by the common judgment.

(3.) THE facts which are not in dispute are that under Section 25 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, the State Government has been vested with a power to appoint one or more APPs in every district for conducting prosecution in the Court of Magistrates. The State Government has appointed APPs to conduct prosecution in the Court of the Magistrates. Sufficient number of APPs were not appointed. The Free Legal Aid Committee, Jamshedpur filed a writ petition (S.L.) No. 1344 of 1981 before the Apex Court and the Apex Court having noticed the statement made in the affidavit filed on behalf of the State that against 562 Courts of Magistrate, only 257 APPs were working, directed the State Government by order dated 9th January, 1990 to create posts of APPs as many as necessary to meet the short -fall and in the meantime, the District Magistrates were directed to take steps under Section 25(3) of the Code of Criminal Procedure to provide the services of a counsel to act as APP in each court so that no single trial is adjourned for want of APPs.