- (1.)PETITIONERS in these three writ petitions seek quashing of respondent nos. 6 to 23s selection and appointment as Agriculture Extension Officer, made pursuant to Advertisement Notification No. PSC of 1997 of April 04, 1997 issued by the Jammu and Kashmir Public Service Commission (PSC, for short).
(2.)RESPONDENTS selection and appointment has been questioned on the ground that besides ignoring the superior merit of the petitioners, the PSC had erred in interviewing even those who had failed to clear the Screening test devised by the Commission for short listing those who had applied seeking consideration for selection.
(3.)JUSTIFYING the selection of respondent nos. 6 to 23, the PSC says that on evaluation of the merit of the candidates who had appeared for the interview, the petitioners were found lower in merit to respondent nos.6 to 23, their selection and subsequent appointment, was thus justified and legal.
Meeting the petitioners plea that the Commission had erred in interviewing even those who had failed to clear the Screening test, the PSC says that the candidates who were possessing higher qualification of M.Sc Agriculture too had been called for interview regardless of their having not cleared the Screening test, in view of the decision of the Commission to exempt them from the requirement of clearing the Screening test.