Srinagar, Feb 08: The High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh directed the Chairman, J&K Service Selection Board (SSB) to appear in person before it, in case order passed by it regarding selection process of 29 Assistant Information Officers (AIOs) posts is not complied within four weeks.
Hearing a contempt plea seeking implementation of judgment regarding the selection process of AIOs, a division bench comprising Justices Rajnesh Oswal and Mohan Lal granted further four weeks time to Chairman SSB, Khalid Jahangir to file compliance of judgment and court orders passed by it from time to time.
“In the interest of justice, four weeks’ time is granted to the respondent to comply with the order, failing which, the respondent shall remain present in court on the next date of hearing,” the bench said while posting the matter for hearing on March 10.
The bench passed the direction after taking note of a status report filed by Chairman SSB on August, 3 last year, stating that the Board has requested the General Administration Department (GAD), to allow the Board to finalise the selection process.
“But till date no concrete steps have been taken by the respondent to ensure the compliance of order passed by this Court,” the court noted.
In this regard, the counsel representing SSB sought further time to report compliance.
Previously, the court directed the officer not to avoid the judgment passed by it merely because of the directions issued by the government calling for withdrawal of posts referred to the Public Service Commission (JKPSC) and SSB and submit compliance regarding the selection process of AIO posts advertised by the department of Information vide notices issued in the year 2006, 2008 and 2010 inviting applications for the posts of Assistant Information Officer Grade-II.
The bench had directed the SSB to make the recommendations by treating the directions of the division bench as final without having any application of the notification issued by the government.
The court was informed by SSB counsel that while the Board was in the process of taking the selection process to its logical conclusion in tune with the directions passed by it, the General Administration Department in terms of notification issued on February, 03, 2022 asked the Board to treat all the posts referred prior to October, 31, 2019 for which selection have not been finalized till date, as also the posts in which there are litigations are to be treated as withdrawn.
“Therefore, in order to ensure implementation of the judgment, the Board has written to GAD, J&K government for allowing the Board to make recommendations against the posts of Assistant Information Officer,” the counsel said.
However, the counsel representing petitioners contended that there is no scope for the respondent to play hide and seek in view of the judgment of the division bench having become final after dismissal of the SLP by the Supreme Court.
He further submitted that the circular instructions of the government cannot condemn the judgment of the Court.
The bench after hearing the counsels noted that the respondents were on their undertaking granted time to take the selection process to its logical conclusion at the earliest but they failed to do so which compelled and formed the ground for the petitioners to file second contempt petition.
On December, 13, 2021, a division bench had closed contempt proceedings against the authorities with a direction to the Board to conclude the selection process of AIOs preferably within one month in tune with the mandate of the judgment of the court passed on May 01, 2013.
The court had underscored that the judgment passed by the division bench way back in 2013, has not been complied with, despite attaining finality.
“The board ought to have proceeded with the selection of Assistant Information Officers Grade-II. The process of selection for the posts had remained pending for more than eight years,” it had said.
