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2026 Supreme(Online)(CAT) 6649
CENTRAL ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL
Rajinder Singh Dogra, J, Ram Mohan Johri, Administrative Member
Manish Kumar Sharma – Appellant
Versus
State Of J&K – Respondent
Transfer Application No. 1654/2020
For the Appellants/Petitioners: Abhinav Sharma
For the Respondents: Sudesh Magotra, F A Natnoo, J A Hamal
Important Points
Subject
Service Law - Selection and Appointment
Act Referred
Headnote
(B) Selection process - Participation of a candidate in an interview session subsequent to the initial date - Where the interview process is scheduled for multiple days and an applicant demonstrates valid reasons for inability to appear on the first day, permitting appearance on a subsequent day of the same process is permissible provided it does not violate rules or cause legal prejudice. (Paras 14, 15)
Facts of the case:
The applicant sought to quash the merit and select list for the post of Assistant Professor in Oto-Rhino-Laryngology, alleging that the selected candidate was improperly interviewed and that the marks awarded for publications and paper presentations were erroneous. The applicant claimed he was entitled to additional marks and that the selected candidate's marks were inflated due to interpolation in the records.
Findings of Court:
The challenge was found to be based on mere conjecture and hypothetical recalculations. The court found that the expert selection committee acted within its jurisdiction, and the applicant failed to prove that the evaluation process was tainted or that he provided evidence of his alleged credentials that was ignored.
Issues: Whether the court can interfere with the merit list prepared by an expert selection committee and whether the relaxation of the interview date for a candidate violates the rules of fairness.
Ratio Decidendi: Courts exercise limited interference in academic selection processes, as such evaluations are within the domain of experts; selection cannot be set aside on the basis of post-selection assertions of the candidate when the process itself followed the established rules of recruitment.
Result: Application dismissed.
| Table of Content |
|---|
| 1. overview of the petition seeking to challenge recruitment results. (Para 1 , 2 , 3) |
| 2. summary of respondent arguments defending the selection process integrity. (Para 4 , 5) |
| 3. court's limited scope of interference in expert academic assessments. (Para 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12) |
| 4. legality of adjusting interview dates within a scheduled process. (Para 13 , 14 , 15 , 16) |
| 5. validation of marking criteria and dismissal of merit reassessment claims. (Para 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25) |
| 6. final confirmation of procedural adherence and dismissal of application. (Para 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 30) |
ORDER
Per: - Ram Mohan Johri, Administrative Member
1. The SWP No.33/2019 was transferred from the Hon’ble High Court
of Jammu & Kashmir at Jammu and was registered as T.A
No.1654/2020 by the Registry of this Tribunal.
2. The present matter was filed before the Hon’ble High Court seeking
following relief: -
a) allow the present writ petition;
b) quash Merit List [Annexure-A to Notification No. 074-PSC
(DR-S) of 2018 dated 04.12.2018], for the post of Assistant
Professor in the discipline of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology (ENT),
Health and Medical Education Department, to the extent, the
private respondent instead of being shown as "absent" has been
shown to have secured 68.61 marks;
c) quash the Select List [Annexure-B to Notification No. 074-PSC
(DR-S) of 2018 dated 04.12.2018] for the post of Assistant
Professor, Govt. Medical College, Kathua in the discipline of
Oto-Rhino-Laryngology under (ENT) Open Merit Category in
pursuance of Advertisement Notification No. 01-PSC (DR-P) of
2018 dated 17.01.2018, to the extent, the name of private
respondent figures as the lone selected candidate for GMC,
Kathua in the aforesaid subject; with further direction to set
aside the selection of private respondent;
d) command and direct the respondent No. 2, to give weightage of
3.75 marks (instead of 3.50) for 15 publications of the
petitioner and further give weightage of 1.00-mark (instead of
0.00) for presentations of two papers at National Level
conferences and add the above referred additional 0.25 + 1.00
(i.e. 1.25) marks in the present total (66.86) of the petitioner,
taking the total of the petitioner to 68.11;
e) command and direct the respondents to take into consideration
only 5 publications of the private respondent (instead of 9 made
by resorting to cuttings and interpolations) and thereafter
award only 1.25 marks to the private respondent for 5
publications (instead of 2.25 for 9 publications) and bring the
total score of the private respondent down to 67.61 (68.61-
1.00);
f) command and direct the respondent PSC to select the petitioner
as Assistant Professor, Govt. Medical College, Kathua, on the
basis of the new total 68.11 number of marks scored by the
petitioner after setting aside the selection of the petitioner
whose total score now came down to 67.61 from earlier 68.61.
g) restrain the respondent Commission from recommending the
name of private respondent for appointment to the post of
Assistant Professor, Govt. Medical College, Kathua in the
discipline of Oto-Rhinolaryngology (ENT) under Open Merit
Category in pursuance of Advertisement Notification No. 01-
PSC (DR-P) of 2018 dated 17.01.2018;
h) ANY other writ, order or direction which this Hon'ble Court
may deem fit or proper in the facts and circumstances of the
case.
3. The facts of the case as pleaded by the petitioner in his pleadings are
as follows: -
a) The present Transfer Application arises out of SWP No.
33/2019, which stood transferred from the Hon’ble High Court
of Jammu & Kashmir at Jammu to this Tribunal and was
registered as T.A. No. 1654/2020.
b) The applicant, Dr. Manish Kumar Sharma, possesses the
requisite postgraduate qualification in the discipline of Oto-
Rhino-Laryngology, i.e., ENT, and claims to have the requisite
teaching experience f
