Kerala High Court has junked a petition against the implementation of the Centre’s new short-term recruitment policy for the Armed forces.
The court said the as petition pertains to recruitment, it should be filed before the Armed Forces Tribunal. (Representative image)
The Kerala High Court has dismissed a petition against the implementation of the Centre’s new short-term recruitment policy for the defence forces filed by Army job seekers.
A total of 23 youths approached the HC against the Centre’s Agnipath scheme. The petitioners submitted that the army recruiting office had issued admit cards for the Common Entrance Examination (CEE) to them and they had successfully completed the physical examination.
All petitioners are NCC ‘C’ certificate holders. The Indian Army CEE got postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic and some of them were informed that NCC ‘C’ holders were exempted from the exams, the petitioners said.
Being NCC ‘C’ certificate holders, the petitioners feel they are eligible for the posts. However, ahead of the implementation of the Agnipath scheme, the Centre notified that all pending processes, including CEE for the previous recruitment years, stand cancelled. The notice states all candidates need to apply fresh for recruitment through the scheme.
However, when the case came up for hearing, the court held that the petition was not maintainable and the petitioners had to approach the Armed Forces Tribunal against the cancellation of earlier notification for Army recruitment. The court said the petition pertains to recruitment, hence it should be filed before the AFT.
The Centre unveiled the recruitment policy on June 14. The announcement of the scheme led to protests across the country over its viability.