BENGALURU: The Karnataka High Court has directed Karnataka Power Corporation Limited (KPCL) to re-conduct the Kannada language test for Junior Engineer (Mechanical) and Assistant Engineer (Mechanical) posts under the Hyderabad-Karnataka and Non-Hyderabad Karnataka quotas, citing the unilateral prescription of minimum qualifying marks post-exam as a substantive eligibility alteration.
“While the recruitment notification clearly prescribed a maximum of 150 marks for the Kannada language test, the subsequent unilateral fixation of a minimum of 50 marks as qualifying marks after the examination that had already been conducted cannot be considered a fair or transparent action. It falls squarely within the first category Eligibility Criteria for Candidates Seeking Employment-and not the second category, which pertains to the method or manner of selecting suitable candidates. By introducing this qualifying criterion after the fact, KPCL has effectively changed the rules of the game,” the court said.
Justice Sachin Shankar Magadum passed the order recently while allowing the petition filed by Geetha Chavan from Vijayapura district as her candidature was rejected on the ground that she scored 36 marks in the Kannada language test as against a minimum of 50 marks, which was fixed after conducting the examination which is contrary to the regulations Karnataka Power Corporation Limited Service (Cadre, Recruitment, Probation, Promotion and Seniority) Rules, 1988.