Vivek Kumar Sharma And Another Vs High Court of Judicature At Allahabad And 16 Others (Allahabad High Court)
In Vivek Kumar Sharma And Another Vs High Court of Judicature At Allahabad And 16 Others, the petitioners challenged the Uttar Pradesh Higher Judicial Service (UPHJS) 2016 selection process and sought moderation and revision of interview marks along with consideration for appointment as Additional District Judges.
The High Court noted that the petitioners, both practising advocates, had participated in the recruitment process for 72 advertised vacancies. After qualifying in the preliminary and written examinations, they appeared in interviews conducted on 29 and 30 April 2017 before Interview Board “A”. The petitioners alleged that candidates interviewed by Board “B” were awarded higher marks while those interviewed by Board “A” generally received lower marks. They claimed they were unfairly awarded only 60 marks and sought moderation or scaling of interview marks.
The petitioners further alleged mala fide postponement of interviews from 22-23 April 2017 to 29-30 April 2017 to benefit 14 allegedly ineligible candidates, including judicial officers and overage advocates. They also argued that respondent candidates who had been allowed to appear provisionally in the written examination pursuant to interim judicial orders could not have been permitted to participate in interviews because no separate judicial order existed for interview participation.
