By the Court.—These Special Appeals under Chapter VIII Rule 5 of the Rules of the Court have been filed challenging the judgment and order dated 24.8.2016 delivered by learned Single Judge in a batch of writ petitions, leading writ petition being Writ Petition No. 5158 (SS) of 2015, whereby selection to the posts of Sub Inspector (Civil Police) and Platoon Commander has been quashed from the stage of declaration of the result of main written examination. The select list which was also assailed before the learned Single Judge has also been quashed. A direction has further been issued by learned Single Judge to the opposite parties therein to prepare the result of main written examination and declare the same afresh keeping in view the observations made therein. It has further been directed by the judgment under appeal that the selection shall accordingly proceed and shall be finalized in accordance with the rules and the observations made in the said judgment and also keeping in view the decision rendered by this Court in the case of Ashish Kumar Pandey and others v. State of U.P. and others, 2016(4) ADJ 163, which has been upheld in special appeal by a Division Bench of this Court. Learned Single Judge has further directed that in respect of certain questions/answers i.e. question Nos. 2, 12, 16 and 26, the U.P. Police Recruitment and Promotion Board shall revisit the matter and take remedial measures in accordance with the past practice in consonance with law.

2. These Special Appeals can be classified in two categories. Special Appeal Nos. 416 of 2016, 420 of 2016, 421 of 2016, 422 of 2016, 426 of 2016, 439 of 2016 and 476 of 2016 have been filed by those candidates who were declared successful in the selection which was under challenge before the learned Single Judge. Special Appeal Nos. 417 of 2016 and 418 of 2016 have been filed by certain candidates only with the prayer to modify the judgment and order dated 24.8.2016 to the extent it has held that reservation shall be applied at the stage of main written examination and further that the provision of Section 3(6) of Reservation Act, 1994 would apply.

3. The State of U.P. has also filed Special Appeal No. 444 of 2016 challenging the judgment and order under appeal passed by the learned Single Judge dated 24.8.2016.

4. Subject-matter of writ petitions which have been decided by the judgment and order under appeal relates to selection to the post of Sub Inspector (Civil Police) and Platoon Commander which was held in pursuance of the advertisement issued on 19.5.2011.

5. Before learned Single Judge a challenge was also made to paragraph 4 of the Government Order dated 25.3.1994.

6. For the purpose of regulating recruitment to the post of Sub Inspectors and Inspectors, statutory rules have been framed which are known as U.P. Sub Inspectors and Inspectors (Civil Police) Service Rules, 2008 (herein after referred to as ‘Service Rules, 2008'). The Service Rules, 2008 prescribe various stages which the selection is to comprise of. The posts of Sub Inspector (Civil Police) which were advertised, were 3698 in total, out of which 777 were reserved for Scheduled Castes, 74 were reserved for Scheduled Tribes, 998 were reserved for Other Backward Class category candidates and 1849 were meant for open/unreserved category candidates. So far as the posts of Platoon Commander are concerned, the total number of posts for which selection was held were 312, out of which the posts reserved for Schedule Castes were 66, and those reserved for Scheduled Tribes were 6. Similarly, 84 posts were reserved for Other Backward Class category candidates and 156 were meant for open/unreserved category candidates. The total number of posts of Sub Inspector and Platoon Commander, thus, clubbed together which were advertised, were 4010. Out of all these posts, 843 were reserved for Scheduled Castes, 80 for Scheduled Tribes, 1082 for Other Backward Class category candidates and 2005 were meant for op