Gujarat HC strikes down rule requiring 5 years’ experience for direct recruitment of civil judges

The Gujarat High Court yesterday declared unconstitutional a rule that required candidates from judicial service applying for direct recruitment as civil judges to have five years’ experience in courts or allied departments..A batch of petitions were filed by Deputy Section officers of the Gujarat state legal department, challenging Rule 7(2)(b) of the Gujarat State Judicial Service Rules, 2005, on the ground that it was violative of Article 14 of the Constitution..The impugned Rule states:.“(2) In order to be eligible for selection by direct recruitment to the cadre of Civil Judges, the candidate.(a) Must possess a degree in law from the University established by law in India.(b) Must be practicing as an Advocate in courts of civil and/or criminal jurisdiction on the last date fixed for receipt of applications; or must have worked in courts or other allied departments for at least five years…”.The petitioners had challenged sub-clause (b) to the extent that it requires those working in courts or other allied departments to have five years’ experience. They brought to light the discrepancy in the Rules wherein fresh law graduates could apply for direct requirement, whereas those entered into service in courts could not do so, unless they had experience of five years..Senior Advocate Anshin Desai, appearing for the petitioners, argued that the Rule arbitrarily differentiates between those who are in service and those who are in practice. The 2005 Rules, he stated, were framed to allow fresh law graduates to join the service, with the objective of tapping young, talented advocates. Hence, he contended, there was no intelligible differentia or reasonable nexus to the object sought to be achieved by the Rules..Gautam Joshi, appearing for the High Court, argued that service candidates and fresh law graduates form two separate classes, and that once a law graduate opts to join the service must necessarily wait for five years before applying to be a civil judge. He also brought to the Court’s attention a single judge decision passed in July 2014, wherein a similar challenge was dismissed..However, the Bench of Chief Justice Subhash Reddy and Justice Vipul Pancholi ruled in favour of the petitioners, thereby overruling the single judge’s decision. The bench noted that pursuant to the Supreme Court’s decision in All India Judges’ Association & Ors. v. Union of India (Second Judges case), new Rules were framed in 2005, which did away with the requirement that advocates desirous of entering judicial service had to have three years’ experience. It held,.“If a bright young law graduate is made eligible for the post of Civil Judge immediately after his entry into practice in the Court, equally, there is no reason to require a bright young law graduate who opts for service, to have 5 years of experience so as to become eligible….…All the law graduates, after completing their degree in law constitute single class for the purpose of recruitment to the post of Civil Judge.”.Therefore, the court struck down Rule 7(2)(b) – to the extent of the five year experience requirement – as ultra vires Article 14 of the Constitution..Read the judgment: