Can candidature be rejected over notification silence on domicile?
Srinagar, Nov 16: A candidate whose candidature has been rejected for the post of Assistant Professor (AP) Anaesthesiology in SKIMS Soura has come up with a plea before the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) Srinagar, raising a question “whether candidature could be rejected on the domicile ground when the advertisement notification skips to mention such a requirement for eligibility”.
Dr Shazia from Ladakh’s Kargil has petitioned the tribunal with the contention that, being eligible for the post of AP Anaesthesiology under ST category, she participated in the selection process in pursuant of an advertisement notification issued by the SKIMS on April 17, 2021.
Subsequently, her candidature had been rejected on non-domicile grounds, a requirement not provided in the advertisement, according to her plea. The petitioner describes the action “being inconsistent with statutory provisions and in violation of the constitutional guaranties”.
She contended that she was declared eligible by the designated selection committee and thereafter called for an interview conducted by the Apical Selection Committee SKIMS through its Chairman.
She further said that despite appearing and performing “successfully” in the interview, her result was “arbitrarily withheld” and “delayed without any reason” by the authorities. She approached the relevant authorities by filing various representations in this regard, which she claimed were ignored.
According to Dr Shazia’s plea, the government, through its Commissioner Secretary, Health and Medical Education Department, vide order dated July 28, 2025, accorded sanction for appointment of Dr Tabasum Shebnum from Gurez Bandipora to the post of AP Anaesthesiology under the ST category. She was “informed informally” that her candidature had been rejected on non-domicile grounds.
Seeking the intervention of the court, the petitioner wants direction to the authorities to notify the list indicating the inter-se merit position of all the eligible candidates. She also seeks to declare as “illegal” the order appointing Tabasum Shebnum as AP Anaesthesiology under the ST category.
Dr Shazia’s plea has raised some questions of law to be considered and adjudicated upon by the tribunal.
“Whether in the aftermath of the Constitutional Reorganisation of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir into UTs of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, the applicant who was is domiciled by the origin in the erstwhile state can be deemed to have lost such domicile merely by virtue of territorial bifurcation absent by any voluntary act or intention on her part to acquire a new domicile elsewhere”.
The petitioner has also sought to settle whether Section 3 A of the J&K Civil Services Decentralisation and Recruitment Act, 2010, could validly be involved in the case of an autonomous institution (SKIMS) as it was then in the Recruitment Process initiated in the year 2021, prior to the adoption of such provision”.
She pleads to know whether the requirement of domicile can be invoked as “post-hoc disqualification” when not prescribed in the advertisement.
After hearing the parties through counsel, the tribunal directed the Additional Director of the SKIMS, Soura, Srinagar to remain present in person on November 18 to answer as to why a decision was not taken on the representations filed by a candidate who had applied for the post of AP Anaesthesiology.
“ It has been felt expedient and in the interest of justice to seek the personal presence of the Additional Director of the SKIMS, Soura, Srinagar in the first instance, in order to answer as to why none of the representations of the applicant have been disposed of and as to what action has been taken on the representations filed by the applicant which are duly received under the stamp and seal of the institute”, a division bench of M S Latif, Member ( J) and Prasant Kumar Member (A) said.
