IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB & HARYANA

AT CHANDIGARH

102 CWP-39633-2025

Date of decision: 29.12.2025

Manik Khurana .....Petitioner

Versus

The Central Administrative Tribunal, Chandigarh Bench, Chandigarh

and others

.....Respondents

107 CWP-39669-2025

Date of decision: 29.12.2025

Sagar and another .....Petitioners

Versus

Union Public Service Commission and others .....Respondents 108 CWP-39672-2025

Date of decision: 29.12.2025

Jai Ishwar and others .....Petitioners

Versus

The Central Administrative Tribunal, Chandigarh Bench, Chandigarh

and others

.....Respondents

CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE NAMIT KUMAR

HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE VIKRAM AGGARWAL

Present : Ms. Geetanjali Chhabra, Advocate

for the petitioner in CWP-39633-2025.

Mr. Kulwinder Bhargav, Advocate

for the petitioner(s) in CWP-39669-2025.

Mr. Akshat Dalal, Advocate

for the petitioner(s) in CWP-39672-2025.

Mr. Sanjeev Kaushik, Advocate (through VC)

for respondent No.2-UPSC in CWP-39633-2025,

for respondent No.1-UPSC in CWP-39669-2025 and

for respondent No.3-UPSC in CWP-39672-2025.

Ms. Shubreet Kaur, Advocate with Ms. Sukriti Gupta, Advocate for respondents No.3 and 4-U.T., Chandigarh in CWP-39633-2025.

Ms. Madhu Dayal, Additional Standing Counsel with Mr. Varun Sandhu, Junior Panel Counsel, for respondent No.2-U.T., Chandigarh in CWP-39669-2025 and for respondent No.4-U.T., Chandigarh in CWP-39672-2025.

****

NAMIT KUMAR, J.

1. This order shall dispose of above-mentioned three writ petitions as they all have arisen out of the same recruitment process and similar questions of facts and law are involved therein. For the sake of convenience, the facts are being extracted from CWP-39633-2025 titled as 'Manik Khurana v. The Central Administrative Tribunal, Chandigarh Bench, Chandigarh and others'.

2. The petitioner has invoked the writ jurisdiction of this Court by filing the present petition under Articles 226/227 of the Constitution of India, seeking the following reliefs:-

“(a) issue a writ, order or direction especially in the nature of certiorari quashing the impugned order dated 23.12.2025 (Annexure P-1) passed by Respondent No.1, whereby the stay application filed by the petitioner in O.A. No. 1157 of 2025 has been illegally, arbitrarily and mechanically rejected;

(b) Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of mandamus, directing Respondents to grant stay of operation and implementation of the Interview Schedule bearing F. No. 59(21)/2025/R-II dated Nil (Annexure P- 10) and all further proceedings pursuant thereto, scheduled from 29.12.2025 to 31.12.2025, for recruitment to the post of Assistant District Attorney, Chandigarh, during the pendency of O.A. No. 1157 of 2025;

(c) In the alternative, direct the Respondents to keep one post of Assistant District Attorney vacant or to permit the petitioner to participate provisionally in the interview, subject to the final outcome of the present writ petition as well as O.A. No. 1157 of 2025;

(d) Pass an interim order staying the interview process scheduled from 29.12.2025 to 31.12.2025, or grant any other protective interim relief deemed just and proper, to prevent the present petition from being rendered infructuous;

xx xx xx xx xx”

3. The brief facts of the case, as have been pleaded in the petition, are that the Union Public Service Commission (hereinafter referred to as 'Commission') issued an advertisement No.08 of 2025, dated 28.06.2025 (Annexure A-4) inviting online applications for recruitment by selection to various posts, including 09 posts of Assistant District Attorney (ADA) in the Law and Prosecution Department, Chandigarh Administration. The relevant portion from the advertisement reads as under:-

“50.(Vacancy No. 25060850228) Nine vacancies for the post of Assistant District Attorney, Law and Prosecution Department, Chandigarh Administration.

RESERVATION POSITION:

(UR-07, EWS-01, OBC-01) (PwBD-01).

Reservation/Suitability of the post for PwBD: Of the nine vacancies, one vacancy is reserved for candidates belonging to category of Persons with Benchmark Disabil