On Friday, May 17, the Supreme Court upheld the Gujarat High Court’s 2023 recommendations for promoting Senior Civil Judges to the 65% promotion quota of District Judges based on the principle of merit-cum-seniority.
Previously, a two-judge bench of the Supreme Court had stayed these promotions, citing potential violations of the merit-cum-seniority principle. However, in the final judgment delivered today, Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, along with Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, lifted the stay and dismissed the challenge to the merit list. The Court affirmed the final select list dated March 10, 2023, finding no issues with the process followed by the High Court.
Scope of the “Merit-cum-Seniority” Principle
Justice Pardiwala, explaining the judgment, stated that the “merit-cum-seniority” principle means assessing each candidate’s suitability individually rather than through comparative merit. The 65% promotional quota does not involve a competitive exam but a suitability test to ensure candidates have adequate legal knowledge and continued efficiency.
Accepting the petitioners’ arguments would blur the distinction between the 65% quota (merit-cum-seniority) and the 10% quota (pure merit). The Supreme Court found that the Gujarat High Court’s promotion process met the requirements of assessing legal knowledge and continued efficiency as outlined in the All India Judges Association case.
The judgment also noted that deviating from the process used by the High Court since 2011 would disadvantage many judicial officers. The ruling does not invalidate promotions by other High Courts following their own rules. Any pending challenges to such promotions will be handled independently by the respective High Courts.
Background
The writ petitioners sought to invalidate the Select List issued by the Gujarat High Court on March 10, 2023, arguing it violated Article 14 of the Indian Constitution and the Gujarat State Judicial Service Rules, 2005. The rules require that 65% of District Judge posts be filled by promoting Senior Civil Judges based on merit-cum-seniority and passing a suitability test.
The Gujarat High Court’s 2022 recruitment notice included 205 judicial officers eligible for promotion, emphasizing the merit-cum-seniority principle and the suitability test’s four components.
2023 Stay Order
On May 12, 2023, Justices MR Shah and CT Ravikumar had stayed the promotions, noting that the High Court seemed to prioritize seniority over merit after achieving a benchmark score. They stated the correct method would be to create a merit list based on aggregate marks from the suitability test’s components and then promote solely based on merit. The stay order was limited to those promotees not within the top 68 candidates on the merit list.
