Service rendered in other state can't be counted for DHJS appointment: Delhi HC

New Delhi, April 24 The Delhi High Court has held that there is no all-India judicial service, hence a person seeking appointment in the judicial service of a state must meet the necessary eligibility requirements of service in the feeder grade of that particular state.

A division bench of Justices Manmohan and Saurabh Banerjee was dealing with a plea filed by a judicial official demanding that her service as a civil judge (junior division) with the Haryana Civil Service (judicial branch) should be counted for the purpose of calculating the qualifying criterion (10 years) for appointment to the Delhi Higher Judicial Service (DHJS) by promotion.

Neetu Nagar, the petitioner in the case, had served in Haryana from June 2012 to May 2018 as civil judge (junior division) and then resigned and joined the Delhi Judicial Service (DJS).

For appointment to the Delhi Higher Judicial Service (DHJS), the service rendered as a judicial officer in another state cannot be counted towards the qualifying service, the court held while dismissing the plea.

The court took note of the Constitutional scheme as reflected in Articles 233 and 235, which says that each high court of a state has control over certain courts under its jurisdiction, and consequently, this differentiation is constitutionally sanctioned.

After joining the DJS, Nagar approached the court seeking to appear for the Limited Department Competitive Examination (LDCE) 2022 as her plea was rejected by the examination committee of the high court asking her to move the court.

The court then held that both - the Haryana Civil Services (HCS) and the Delhi Judicial Services (DJS) - are different judicial services of two different states governed by different service rules and controlled by different high courts.

The order said: "Furthermore, since DJS and HCS are not departments of an all-India judicial service, the petitioner has to complete the prescribed eligibility criterion of service in the feeder grade, i.e., DJS. Consequently, the assumption and presumption underlying the arguments of the petitioner that there is an all-India judicial service for judicial officials is contrary to facts and untenable in law."

The condition precedent for participating in the LDCE examination is the fulfilment of 10 years of qualifying service in Delhi, according to the Delhi Judicial Service Rules, the high court noted.

"There being no provision for inter-changeability or counting of previous service in any other service in the said DJS Rules, this court cannot extend such benefits beyond the prescribed purview thereof," the bench underscored.

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