HC enables law graduates who were not conferred with degrees in 2016 to apply for post of civil judge

CHENNAI: Coming to the rescues of law graduates who were unable to apply for the post of civil judge as their law degree was not issued within three years prior to the date of notification about the recruitment, the Madras High Court in an interim order directed the Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission (TNPSC) to open the online window until October 29 to enable fresh law graduates of recognised universities of the year 2016 to apply for the post.

A division bench comprising acting Chief Justice Vineet Kothari and Justice C Saravanan on allowing those who have obtained their provisional law degree certificate on any date before the date specified in the notification, said, “These fresh law graduates of the year 2016 shall be allowed to pay the prescribed fees online for their examination within the aforesaid window period of October

21 to 29. The last date for off-line payment of prescribed fees shall close on 31.”

The petitioners had submitted that their applications were not accepted online because even though they passed their final year law examination from the duly approved universities in 2016, their provisional certificates for the degree of the said BL examination were issued on a date which fell prior to September 9 2016 and, thus, their law degree was not issued within a period of three years prior to the date of notification.

They also contended that their batch mates or the law graduates of 2016 were treated as having obtained law degree “within three years” because their provisional certificate for law degree was issued after September 9, 2016, but before it making them eligible in the said recruitment process.

However, the bench on holding that the present interim order of this Court shall be available only up to 11.59 pm of Tuesday, October 29 and under no circumstances this date will be further extendable, said “We make it clear that no fresh writ petition for the said purpose by the candidates falling in the aforesaid category is required to be filed nor the same will be entertained and irrespective of the filing of writ petitions, such candidates will be entitled to apply online, provided they satisfy the other conditions and criteria, as stipulated in the notification dated September 9.” This interim order shall remain subject to the final decision of these writ petitions, the bench added.