*THE HON’BLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE SRI APARESH KUMAR SINGH AND *THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE G.M.MOHIUDDIN + WRIT APPEAL No.982 of 2025 %17-02-2026 Between # Telangana Public Service Commission (TGPSC)

….Appellant AND Y. Jagadish and 16 others.

….Respondents !Counsel for the appellant : Sri P.S.Rajasekhar, learned Standing Counsel for TGPSC ^Counsel for the respondents : Sri D.V.Sitharam Murthy, learned Senior Counsel representing Sri M.Avinash Reddy, learned counsel for respondent Nos.1 to 5, 7 to 9 and 11 to 15 Gist :

>Head Note :

? Cases referred

1. (2013)4 SCC 540

2. (2008)3 SCC 512

3. AIR 1965 SC 491

IN THE HIGH COURT FOR THE STATE OF TELANGANA AT HYDERABAD THE HON’BLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE SRI APARESH KUMAR SINGH AND THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE G.M.MOHIUDDIN WRIT APPEAL No.982 of 2025 DATE: 17.02.2026 BETWEEN:

Telangana Public Service Commission (TGPSC)

….Appellant AND Y. Jagadish and 16 others.

….Respondents

JUDGMENT

This writ appeal, preferred under Clause 15 of the Letters Patent, assails the order dated 05.12.2024 passed by the learned Single Judge in W.P.No.16415 of 2021. By the impugned order, the learned Single Judge allowed the writ petition filed by the respondents herein (original writ petitioners) and directed the appellant- Commission to consider their candidature for the post of Mandal Planning and Statistical Officer/Assistant Statistical Officer strictly in accordance with G.O.Ms.No.3, Planning (Establishment) Department, dated 01.03.2012 and Notification No.12/2018, dated 02.06.2018.

Factual background (in brief)

2. On 02.06.2018, the appellant-Telangana Public Service Commission (TGPSC) issued Notification No.12/2018 inviting applications for 474 posts of Mandal Planning and Statistical Officer/Assistant Statistical Officer in the Directorate of Economics and Statistics Subordinate Services Department.

3. The educational qualifications prescribed for the said post are set out in paragraph 4 of the Notification, which are traceable to G.O.Ms.No.3, Planning (Establishment) Department, dated 01.03.2012 (whereby the Andhra Pradesh Economics and Statistical Subordinate Service Rules, 1991 were amended). The relevant portion reads as under:

4. The respondents, who are B.Tech (Computer Science) graduates, applied for the said posts and were permitted to appear for the written examination conducted on 03.09.2018 and were subsequently called for certificate verification between 10.01.2019 and 12.01.2019. During certificate verification, the Commission noticed that the respondents had studied ‘Probability and Statistics’ for only one semester (six months) in their B.Tech course, whereas the prescribed qualification required study of Statistics for ‘one year’ or ‘two years’ or ‘all the three years.’ In order to clarify the said requirement, the Commission issued a Memo dated 31.12.2018 containing the following notes as under:

Note- 1: Study of Statistics for one year or 2 semesters is necessary to be eligible for the said post.

2: As such Candidates who studied B.Tech (Computer Science)

with minimum of one year study of Statistics are also eligible.

5. Aggrieved thereby, certain candidates filed W.P.No.3043 of 2019 and batch challenging the Memo dated 31.12.2018. By interim order dated 04.04.2019, this Court directed the respondents therein to consider the cases of the petitioners without reference to the Memo dated 31.12.2018 and strictly in terms of G.O.Ms.No.3. Pursuant to the said interim order, the Commission referred the matter to a Committee of Subject Experts comprising:

i) Prof. V.V. Hara Gopal, Professor of Statistics, BITS-Pilani, Hyderabad Campus;

ii) Prof. Madhuchhanda Bhattacharjee, Professor of Statistics, University of Hyderabad, Gachibowli, Hyderabad; and iii) Prof. B. Sudhakar Reddy, Chairman, Board of Studies, Department of Economics, Osmania University, Hyderabad.

6. The Expert Committee submitted its report dated 12.04.2019 observing, inter alia, as follows:

“As per G.O.Ms.No.3 dated 01.03.2012, the ‘year’ means an academic year cons