Bhubaneswar: The Supreme Court on Thursday admitted a petition on alleged irregularities in assistant section officers (ASOs) recruitment exam conducted by the Odisha Public Service Commission (OPSC).
This came almost a month after the Orissa High Court endorsed OPSC notification, shortlisting 1,104 candidates as part of the process for recruitment of 796 ASOs in Group B posts of the Odisha Secretariat Service.
While admitting a petition filed by Rajat Mishra, challenging the HC verdict, the SC issued a notice to the Odisha Government, OPSC and other parties, asking them submit reply within four weeks when the matter will be taken up again.
On December 22, the division bench of Acting Chief Justice BR Sarangi and Justice MS Raman of the HC termed the May 19, 2023, order of a single judge bench, which had quashed the merit list and directed the OPSC to draw a fresh one, as “absolutely misconceived” and directed for resumption of the selection process.
The written examination was conducted by OPSC on August 27, 2022, for recruitment of 796 ASOs in Group B of Odisha Secretariat Service. While 1,48, 888 candidates appeared the examination, OPSC had notified a merit list of 1,104 candidates for document verification and skill test which was approximately 1.5 times of the vacancies advertised.
Rajat Mishra and four others, who were not among the shortlisted candidates, had then challenged the introduction of cut-off marks in different subjects for preparing the merit list. Following which, a single judge bench of Justice AK Mohapatra quashed the merit list on May 19, 2023, and directed OPSC to prepare a fresh list based on aggregate marks and notify them within two months. Later, on July 31, Justice Mohapatra also confirmed the quashing order while rejecting a review petition.
Two separate writ appeals were filed by Kabita Jena and Satyabrata Nayak, who were among those shortlisted in the merit list, and another writ appeal by OPSC challenged the order of the single judge.
The OPSC had argued that it had the power to shortlist the candidates either on the basis of subject-wise qualifying marks or aggregate qualifying marks. The same was mentioned in the advertisement for the recruitment exam, it added.
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