Promoted State Tax Inspectors Sent Back to Clerical Posts as Chhattisgarh HC Upholds Exam Cancellation Over Widespread Irregularities

The petitioners, initially serving as Assistant Grade-III employees, were selected and appointed as State Tax Inspectors through Limited Departmental Competitive Examinations held in 2021 and 2022.

Some had completed probation and been confirmed; others had not.

Following complaints alleging irregularities, a five-member Enquiry Committee examined the selection processes and submitted reports dated 3 July 2026.

By order dated 11 September 2026, the State cancelled the examinations and consequential appointments and directed the petitioners to return to their substantive posts.

The petitioners challenged the order, principally alleging that it was made without notice, disclosure of the enquiry material, or an opportunity to be heard.

Under Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution, public recruitment must be fair and lawful; an appointment made in violation of those guarantees may be void, but the authority must establish the foundational facts supporting that conclusion.

Where illegality is widespread and pervasive, affects the results, and makes it impracticable to identify the candidates unlawfully benefited or deprived, the entire selection may be cancelled without individual show-cause notices.

The Court also relied on Krishan Yadav v. State of Haryana, (1994) 4 SCC 165, concerning cancellation of a selection conceived in fraud, and The Bihar School Examination Board v. Subhas Chandra Sinha, (1970) 1 SCC 648, concerning cancellation of an examination vitiated by mass malpractice.

Judicial review under Article 226 permits scrutiny of the basis and proportionality of cancellation, but does not require the Court to substitute its preferred administrative option where the decision is supported by pervasive taint.

The enquiry reports identified serious defects in both examinations, including failures in coding and custody of answer books, unexplained re-evaluation and manual alteration of marks, reservation-roster violations, deficient examination records, unauthorised evaluators, discrepancies in answer-book numbers, and answers matching model answers word for word.

The Court considered these findings to demonstrate pervasive taint affecting the integrity of the selection process as a whole, rather than isolated misconduct attributable only to identifiable candidates.

Because more than 500 candidates had participated and separating affected candidates from others was not practicable, cancellation of the entire process was not disproportionate.

On that basis, the Court rejected the challenge notwithstanding the petitioners’ lack of individual findings of wrongdoing and their claims of inadequate hearing.

It dismissed all connected writ petitions, leaving the parties to bear their own costs.

The State was directed to initiate and expeditiously complete a fresh recruitment process in accordance with the applicable rules, ensuring fairness, transparency, and impartiality.