IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH

1) CWP-10347-2021(O&M)

Sunil Kumar and others .....Petitioners VERSUS Punjab State Transmission Corporation Limited ..Respondent

2) CWP-10810-2021(O&M)

Sanjay Kumar and others .....Petitioners VERSUS The Punjab State Transmission Corporation Limited ..Respondent

3) CWP-11038-2021(O&M)

Palwinder Singh and others .....Petitioners VERSUS The Punjab State Transmission Corporation Limited ..Respondent Reserved on: 12.01.2026 Pronounced on:22.01.2026 Uploaded on:22.01.2026 Whether only the operative part of the judgment is pronounced? No Whether full judgment is pronounced? Yes CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE HARPREET SINGH BRAR Present : Mr. D.S.Patwalia, Sr. Advocate with Mr. Ayush Gupta, Advocate for the petitioner No.5 in CWP-10347-2021, for petitioners No.6, 8 and 14 in CWP-11038-2021 and for petitioners No.6 and 14 in CWP-10810-2021.

Mr. Aman Sharma, Mr.Chirag Suri, Ms. Sital Sharma and Mr. Pavandeep Kaur, Advocate for petitioner No.8 in CWP-10810-

2021, for petitioner No.7 in CWP-11038-2021 and for petitioner No.6 in CWP-10347-2021.

Mr. Vikas Chatrath, Sr. Advocate with Ms. Haridhi Aggarwal, Advocate for respondent(s)-PSTCL.

HARPREET SINGH BRAR, J.

1. This judgment shall dispose of all the above mentioned writ petitions as they arise from a similar factual matrix and pose a common question of law. However, for the sake of brevity, the facts are taken from CWP-10347-2021.

2. The present petition has been filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India seeking issuance of a writ in the nature of certiorari for quashing the advertisement no.CRA-11/2021 dated 18.05.2021 (Annexure P-1) issued by the respondent-PSTCL to the extent of infringement upon the right of the petitioners to apply and be considered for recruitment to the post of Assistant Lineman (ALM) and Assistant Sub-Station Attendant (ASSA), respectively. A further prayer is made for issuance of writ in the nature of mandamus seeking directions to the respondent-PSTCL to permit the petitioners holding a degree or diploma in engineering to apply and be considered for recruitment to the said posts.

FACTUAL BACKGROUND

3. An advertisement bearing no.CRA-11/2021 dated 18.05.2021 (Annexure P-1) was issued by respondent-PSTCL for recruitment to 350 posts of Assistant Lineman (ALM) and 150 posts of Assistant Sub-Station Attendant (ASSA) The essential eligibility qualifications prescribed therein included a Full Time regular ITI certificate in Electrical/Wireman Trade from a recognised institution. The petitioners attempted to apply to the said posts online but were unsuccessful since the portal did not allow them to enter degree/diploma in Engineering as a qualification without selecting the option for 02-year ITI certificate. Hence, the present writ petition.

CONTENTIONS

4. Learned Senior counsel for the petitioner(s) submitted that the petitioners cannot be excluded from the zone of consideration for possessing a higher qualification in the same field. It is settled law that prescription of a minimum qualification cannot have the effect of excluding a candidate possessing a higher qualification. Reliance in this regard was placed on the judgments rendered by the Hon’ble Supreme Court in Zahoor Ahmad Rather and others vs. Sheikh Imtiyaz Ahmad and others (2019) 2 SCC 404, Jyoti K.K. and others vs. Kerala Public Service Commission and others (2010) 15 SCC 596 and a Full Bench of this Court in Manjit Singh vs. State of Punjab and others 2010(3) SCT 703. Learned Senior counsel also referred to the judgment rendered by a Coordinate Bench in Jagdish Prasad and another vs. Uttari Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam Ltd. and others in CWP-14779-2007 decided on 19.08.2009 wherein appointment as of a candidate as ALM was challenged on the ground that he possessed a diploma in Electrical Engineering instead of the prescribed qualification of a two-year vocational course or ITI certification in the Electrician/Wireman trade. It was held therein that higher qu