Group-I recruitment: A.P. HC gives Chief Secretary 24 hours to comply with order

VIJAYAWADA

Censuring Chief Secretary K. Vijayanand for not implementing its order related to APPSC Group-I examinations, dated February 11, the Andhra Pradesh High Court on Wednesday directed him to ensure compliance by February 26 morning or face contempt proceedings. 

Upon being directed on February 24 to explain his wilful disobedience, Mr. Vijayanand appeared before the court on Thursday. He was supposed to submit a compliance report within a week of the said order. 

Taking note of the facts during Wednesday’s hearing, a Division Bench comprising Justices Battu Devanand and A. Hari Haranadha Sarma expressed strong disapproval of what it called a careless attitude of Mr. Vijayanand in not appointing 326 candidates who were selected in Group-I main examinations conducted by the APPSC in December 2020, in non-focal posts. 

The judges said that there were no excuses, including any perceived ambiguity on the rule position with regard to the focal and non-focal posts, for not implementing its order as the issue was well settled through a G.O. in 1966. 

The Bench told Advocate General Dammalapati Srinivas that the court would brook no further delay and instructed him that the order dated February 11 be carried out forthwith and a compliance report filed by 10.30 a.m. of February 26, while noting that the CS was ill-advised.

Senior advocate Jandhyala Ravi Shankar argued on behalf of the unsuccessful candidates (who challenged the validity of the examination results) that the government was dragging the matter, which was evident from a Special Leave Petition (SLP) filed by it in the Supreme Court. 

After listening to arguments by both sides, the court directed the CS to ensure that the February 11 order is given effect by the specified time or otherwise make a personal appearance again to let the contempt proceedings commence. 

Towards implement the court order urgently, Mr. Vijayanand issued a top priority note to the the Special Chief Secretaries, Principal Secretaries and Secretaries concerned to issue directions to the authorities concerned to immediately issue orders relieving the candidates selected under the APPSC Group-I notification No.27/2018 and working in focal posts, to report before the Government/Heads of Department/Competent Authority as applicable by 5 p.m. of February 25.

He called for a consolidated compliance report by 7 p.m. the same day (February 25) to represent the matter during Thursday’s hearing in the court.