- (1.) Learned senior counsel for the petitioners seeks permission to withdraw the writ petition. Permission sought for is granted. The writ petition is dismissed as withdrawn without prejudice to the rights of the petitioners to seek other appropriate remedies with regard to their seniority. The petitioners in these writ petitions and Interim applications are members of the Uttar Pradesh Judicial Service. Writ Petition No.236/2007 and I.A.No.1/07 in I.A.No.204/2007 are filed by the U.P.Judicial Officers Association.
(2.) In All India Judges' Association& Ors. Vs. Union of India & Ors., (2002) 4 SCC p.247, this Court has directed that promotion to the cadre of Higher Judicial Service should be streamlined based on the recommendations of Justice Shetty Commission. Prior to the directions given by this Court for filling up the vacancies in the cadre of Higher Judicial Service there were only two sources i.e. one by promotion from the cadre of Civil Judge (Senior Division) i.e. the members of the Subordinate Judicial Service and the other by direct recruitment as per Article 233 of the Constitution of India from the members of the Bar. This Court felt that the members of the subordinate judiciary should also be given a fast track promotion and those who are more meritorious in service should be given an opportunity to compete for the posts of higher judicial services apart from the ordinary channel of promotion on seniority. To give opportunity to the subordinate judicial officers from getting early promotion to the Higher Judicial Service, this Court has directed that 25% of the vacancies of Higher Judicial Service shall be filled up by a competitive examination and the Civil Judge (Senior Division) who are in the feeder category shall be given an opportunity to get such promotions. Keeping in view, the following direction was given by this Court : ".....At the same time, we are of the opinion that there has to be certain minimum standard, objectively adjudged, for officers who are to enter the Higher Judicial Service as Additional District Judge and District Judges. While we agree with the Shetty Commission that the recruitment to the Higher Judicial Service i.e. the District Judge cadre from amongst the advocates should be 25 per cent and the process of recruitment is to be by a competitive examination, both written and viva voce, we are of the opinion that there should be an objective method of testing the suitability of the subordinate judicial officers for promotion to the Higher Judicial Service. Furthermore, there should also be an incentive amongst the relatively junior and other officers to improve and to compete with each other so as to excel and get quicker promotion. In this way, we expect that the calibre of the members of the Higher Judicial Service will further improve. In order to achieve this, while the ratio of 75 per cent appointment by promotion and 25 per cent by direct recruitment to the Higher Judicial Service is maintained, we are, however, of the opinion that there should be two methods as far as appointment by promotion is concerned : 50 per cent of the total posts in the Higher Judicial Service must be filled by promotion on the basis of principle of merit-cum-seniority. For this purpose, the High Courts should devise and evolve a test in order to ascertain and examine the legal knowledge of those candidates and to assess their continued efficiency with adequate knowledge of case-law. The remaining 25 per cent of the posts in the service shall be filled by promotion strictly on the basis of merit through the limited departmental competitive examination for which the qualifying service as a Civil Judge (Senior Division) should be not less than five years. The High Courts will have to frame a rule in this regard. As a result of the aforesaid, to recapitulate, we direct that recruitment to the Higher Judicial Service i.e. the cadre of District Judges will be : 1(a)50 per cent by promotion from amongst the Civil Judges (Senior Division) on the basis of principle of merit-cum-seniority and passing a suitability test; (b) 25 per cent by promotion strictly on the basis of merit through limited competitive examination of Civil Judges (Senior Division) having not less than five years' qualifying service; and (c) 25 per cent of the posts shall be filled by direct recruitment from amongst the eligible advocates on the basis of the written and viva voce test conducted by respective High Courts; (2) Appropriate rules shall be framed as above by the High Court as early as possible."
(3.) This Court has stated that the quota for promotion to the Higher Judicial Service is 50 per cent from amongst the Civil Judges (Senior Division) on the basis of principle of merit-cum-seniority and 25 per cent strictly on the basis of merit through limited competitive examination and 25 per cent by direct recruitment.;