- (1.) The petitioner is a differently-abled person who applied under advertisement No.1 dated 9.8.2011 inserted in the press by the Punjab Public Service Commission, Patiala inviting applications for filling up 110 posts of Civil Judges (Jr. Division) in the State of Punjab. He competed in the reserve category 9 of "Physically Handicapped, Punjab" and secured 48.8% marks in the examination. There were 5 other competitors in this category who obtained marks between 45% to 49%. The service rules require a minimum 50% marks in the aggregate for clearing the main examination. Advertisement No.1 (P-2) in its category wise break up advertised four vacancies to be filled up from Category 9 i.e. "Physically Handicapped, Punjab" of which two posts were shown as backlog.
(2.) The petitioner could not secure 50% marks in the main examination, and therefore, was not called for interview. The Punjab Civil Service (Judicial Branch) Rules 1951 ( for short "the Rules") as amended by notification dated 4.6.1991 make it mandatory for candidates to secure minimum 50% marks in the aggregate to become eligible for viva voce.
(3.) The Rules, however, permit relaxation of 5% for candidates belonging to SC/BC category. There is no such reservation for the differently abled category.;