Guwahati, Aug 30: The Gauhati High Court has directed the Panchayat and Rural Development Department (P&RD) of Assam to appoint two candidates as Junior Engineers, who were denied the job due to issues with their Economically Weaker Section (EWS) certificates.

The court observed that the recruitment advertisement did not specify a format for EWS certificates and that the rejection of the candidates’ certificates, issued in the 2019-2020 financial year, was unreasonable. The court noted that the EWS concept was new and the certificate format was not provided until a 2022 advertisement.

The petitioners had secured higher marks than the appointed candidates but were denied the job due to the certificate issue. The court ruled in their favor, stating that in the absence of clear guidelines, an applicant cannot be denied appointment.

The court’s decision was confined to the specific facts and circumstances of the case, considering the emerging stage of the EWS concept.