Category cancelled, candidate drags HPSC to court

Chandigarh: The ongoing selection process of the Haryana Civil Services (HCS) has come under the scanner of the Punjab and Haryana high court, which on Thursday issued a notice to the Haryana Public Service Commission (HPSC) and the state on the plea of an aspirant against cancellation of his candidature.
Justice Tejinder Singh Dhindsa of the HC issued the notice after hearing a petition filed by Yashvir Singh, a resident of Hisar.The petitioner had applied for the exam after an advertisement issued by the HPSC on February 20, 2014, for 22 posts of HCS (executive) and allied services, under the special backward classes (SBC) category. He was issued a roll number by the HPSC, and appeared and qualified the preliminary examination held on August 3, 2014.
In the meantime, the SBC category was challenged before the HC, which on July 27, 2015, stayed the reservation in government jobs under that in Haryana. On August 21, 2015, the HPSC, however, allowed candidates of SBC category to appear in the main examination, and issued admit cards subject to the condition that their candidature would depend on the outcome of the petition that had challenged the SBC quota.
The main examination for HCS held from April 14-20, 2016, and the final result was declared on July 5 by the HPSC. However, the candidature of the petitioner has been held null and void by the commission. Aggrieved from the HPSC decision to cancel his candidature, he has challenged the commission's decision before the HC. Counsel for the petitioner SK Malik argued before the court that once the SBC category had been replaced by the state with the newly-created economically backward persons (EBP) category, the decision to invalidate the petitioner's candidature was against the constitutional provisions.
"Without giving any consideration on this aspect, and without giving any opportunity of option or opportunity of hearing to the petitioner as in the changed circumstances, it is the settled law of the land that the candidature cannot be withdrawn for any reason, once the candidate is allowed to take the examination," argued Malik. The petitioner has sought directions to the government to restore his candidature, and consider him and other similarly placed candidates under EBP category, as he fulfilled the criteria for EBP category. Hearing the petition, the court has issued notice to chief secretary Haryana and the HPSC, seeking their replies on the petitioner's contentions by October 8.