On Monday, the Supreme Court issued directives to set a recruitment timeline for District Judges in Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, and Haryana High Courts. The matter concerning Tamil Nadu High Court is scheduled for tomorrow.
The case was presented to a panel of judges including Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, Justices JB Pardiwala, and Manoj Misra.
Regarding Madhya Pradesh, the court observed that in August 2023, 21 vacancies for District Judges were advertised under the 25% quota. However, the preliminary examination date was announced two months later. The court instructed the High Court to create a comprehensive schedule, including the preliminary examination date and other stages, and publish it in an advertisement. This directive must be followed within one week.
For convenience, the schedule will cover:
Regarding appointments under the 10% quota, the Court mandated that the notification for successful candidate appointments must be issued within fifteen days of this order.
The Court also instructed that the process for filling vacancies for Civil Judge (Senior Division) must be finalized by December 7, 2023. The Court was directed to establish a time schedule for this process as well.
Importantly, the same deadline was set for the selection process under the promotion quota.
Finally, the Court instructed the counsel representing the High Court to submit a report on the actions being taken regarding infrastructural matters for the District Judiciary, which should encompass land allocation.
Regarding the Punjab High Court, the Court initially issued instructions for appointments under the 25% direct recruitment quota for District Judges. The Recruitment and Promotion Committee was directed to establish a schedule for expeditiously completing the process, with a clear deadline of March 31, 2004, for compliance.
For appointments under the 10% quota, the Court mandated that the process must be completed by March 31, 2024. The same deadline was set for appointments under the 65% promotional quota.
However, in the case of the recruitment of Civil Judge (Junior Division), the Court recognized that the process has already been finalized. Therefore, the State Government was instructed to issue a formal notification by December 7, 2023.
Regarding infrastructure matters, a similar directive, as given to the Madhya Pradesh High Court, was issued here too.
The Court took note of a scheduled meeting of the High Court's Committee for today. In light of this, the Court directed that the decisions made during the meeting be communicated to the Court.
TAGS: Appointment 65% promotional quota District Judges Candidates Petitions High Court
