Autonomous institutions like J&K Bank are not bound by the reservation policy of the Government of Jammu & Kashmir and have the discretion to determine their own reservation policies.

JUDGMENT :

1. The petitioners in these petitions are Ex-servicemen and are aggrieved of Advertisement Notification No.JKB/HRD/Rectt/ 2020-73 dated 2nd July, 2020 issued by the Jammu & Kashmir Bank Limited [“the Bank”] for making recruitment of Banking Associates. The petitioners claim that, as per the Jammu & Kashmir Reservation Act, 2004 and the Rules framed thereunder, there is a horizontal reservation of 6% earmarked for the category of “Ex-Servicemen”. The Bank having adopted the reservation Rules of the Government is bound to provide said horizontal reservation in favour of the “Ex-Servicemen” category.

2. The short grievance projected by the petitioners in this petition is that, though, they were eligible to participate in the selection process undertaken by the Bank for recruitment of Banking Associates under the category of Ex-Servicemen, yet the application forms submitted by them were not entertained. It is with this grievance, the petitioners approached this Court through the medium of these petitions seeking, inter alia, the following reliefs:-

“(a) Certiorari for quashing the Advertisement Notice issued by respondent no.1 for selection of Banking Associates by which the candidates belonging to Ex-Servicemen candidates have been excluded from the benefits of reserved category in violation of the reservation rules and also no age relaxation has been provided.

(b) Mandamus commanding the respondents to issue fresh advertisement for the post of Banking Associates by including the Ex-Servicemen category in the reserved categories and also providing age relaxation.”

3. As is evident from an interim order dated 29th July, 2020 passed in WP(C) No.1199/2022, this Court, while issuing notice to the respondents for filing objections, also directed the Bank to open online registration of applications for four days starting w.e.f. 30th July, 2020 to enable the petitioners to submit their application forms on their own risk and responsibility. This is how the petitioners submitted their application forms and participated in the selection process. The impugned advertisement notification is assailed by the petitioners primarily on the following grounds:-

(i) That at one place the advertisement notification clearly provides that the reservation rules as applicable in the UT of J&K shall be applicable to the selection, however, while providing reservation for the different categories, the Bank conveniently forgets to include the category of ‘Ex-Servicemen’ entitled to 6% horizontal reservation.

(ii) That the Bank being a public authority is otherwise bound to follow the policy of reservation adopted by the Government of UT of Jammu & Kashmir.

(iii) The Bank is completely wrong to take a stand that the maximum pay scale of the Banking Associates is higher than Rs.10,500/- as indicated in explanation (A) of Rule 4 of the Jammu & Kashmir Reservation Rules, 2005. The Bank has deliberately ignored to take into consideration that the maximum pay scale of Rs.10,500/- mentioned in the explanation (supra) has been revised from time to time.

4. Per contra, the stand taken by the Bank in the reply affidavit and the one taken before me during the course of arguments is ambiguous and mutually exclusive. In the reply affidavit, the Bank has taken a stand that the petitioners are not entitled to the benefit of 6% horizontal reservation earmarked for Ex-Servicemen category for the reason that the maximum pay scale of Banking Associate exceeds Rs.10,500/- as prescribed in Explanation (A) of Rule 4 of the J&K Reservation Rules. It is submitted that the revision of pay scales undertaken by the Government of J&K is not ipso facto applicable to the Bank. The revision of pay scale of the Bank takes place separately. Reliance is also placed by the Bank on the decision of the Board of Directors dated 01.06.2020 to urge that the amendments and alterations made in the J&K Bank Recruitment Service Rules make no provision for relaxation in upper age for Ex-Servicemen