The Court upheld the method of short-listing candidates when the number of applicants exceeded the limit of manageability, and clarified that service as a Law Officer is not considered Bar experience.

Thomas, J.

Appellant was one of the applicants when the Kerala High Court invited applications for selection of suitable candidates from practising advocates for direct recruitment to the posts of District and Sessions Judge. As he was excluded from the short-list prepared by the High Court for viva voce, he filed an Original Petition for various reliefs. But learned Single Judge before whom it came has dismissed it at the threshold itself. Appellant has, therefore, filed this Writ Appeal.

2. Applications were invited from those advocates who have already put in seven years of practice.

Appellant was enrolled as an advocate on 11-12-1983. According to him, he practised as an advocate till 17-4-90 and then he joined the F.A.C.T. Ltd., Alwaye, as a Law Officer. But he resigned the post on 15-2-1992 and resumed the practice of law. The duration of his practice as an advocate was 9 years and one month as on the date of his application. When he was not called by the High Court for the oral interview, he made enquiries and came to know that he was one of the applicants excluded from the interview as the High Court had short listed the candidates for oral interview. In the Original Petition he prayed for a direction compelling the High Court to interview the appellant also.

3. Two contentions were mainly advanced by the appellant. First is that appellant had already put in more than 10 years' practice, if the period during which he worked as Law Officer of FACT is also reckoned for Bar experience. Second is that since he had acquired the minimum qualification of seven years of legal practice at any rate, he is entitled to be called for the interview.

4. The Judges of the Kerala High Court have formulated the norms and procedure to be followed in the matter of selection of candidates for appointment as District and Sessions Judges through direct recruitment from the Bar. The task of selecting the suitable candidates has been entrusted to a Committee consisting of five senior most judges of the High Court including the Chief Justice. As per the approved procedure, all the applications are to be tabulated by the Registrar of the High Court who shall submit it to the Committee. After rejecting defective applications the remaining valid applications would be taken up for consideration. The Chief Justice would then call for a report about each candidate (in a format prescribed) from such of those judicial Officers or Officer before whom the candidate would have appeared as may be decided by the Committee.

5. A reading of the file relating to the erstwhile selection reveals that there were 404 applications out of which 29 applications were rejected as defective, and there were 375 valid applications. The Committee felt that the number of applicants was "disproportionately heavy vis-a-vis the number of posts to be filled up". The Committee then noted that it would be very tedious and time consuming exercise to interview all those 375 applicants and hence decided to short-list the applicants on some rational and reasonable basis. After considering different options the Committee decided to prepare a short list of candidates having "Bar experience for ten years and more."

6. Viva-voce or oral interview is intended in the selection process "for deciding the candidates" general knowledge, grasp of general principles of law, familiarity with substantive and procedural law, both civil and criminal, analytical ability, quickness of grasp, power of expression, capacity for objective assessment and all other relevant factors regarding suitability for appointment to the cadre of District Judges". As per the procedure laid down those candidates who fail to secure a minimum of 60% marks (for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes candidates it is 50%) in the oral interview would not be treated as suitable for appointment. As the procedure does not contemplate any written test for recruitment to the cadre of District Judges, oral interview is the onl