Gujarat High Court Upholds 15-Year Service Rule for PSI Recruitment, Dismisses Petitions

The Gujarat High Court has dismissed a batch of petitions challenging the recruitment rules for the Police Sub-Inspector (Unarmed), Class-3 posts and the Special Competitive Examination, upholding the state's requirement of 15 years of combined service as an eligibility criterion.

The court held that prescribing eligibility conditions for recruitment falls within the government's policy domain and that judicial interference is unwarranted unless a rule is found to be arbitrary, illegal, or unconstitutional.

Court Refuses to Interfere in Government Policy

Observing that a recruitment rule does not become unconstitutional merely because it adversely affects a section of candidates, the High Court said the authority to frame eligibility criteria rests with the rule-making authority. Finding no legal infirmity in the challenged provisions, the court dismissed all the petitions along with the connected civil applications.

The court reiterated that while exercising its powers under Article 226 of the Constitution, it cannot step into the shoes of the rule-making authority. Judicial review of policy decisions, it said, remains limited unless there is a clear constitutional or legal violation.

Petitioners Challenged Rule After 13 Years

The court noted that the petitioners failed to establish that Clause 2(b)(ii) of the Police Sub-Inspector (Unarmed), Class-3 Recruitment Rules, 2020, or Clause 3 of the Special Competitive Examination Rules, 2024, violated Articles 14 or 16 of the Constitution or were arbitrary or unreasonable.

According to the judgment, the petitioners were appointed in 2011, while the 15-year combined service requirement was introduced through an amendment to the recruitment rules in 2012. Despite several recruitment cycles being held thereafter, they did not challenge the provision for nearly 13 years and approached the High Court only after being declared ineligible under the 2025 recruitment notification.