HYDE RABAD: The Sindh High Court has directed the chairman of the Sindh Public Service Commission (SPSC) to comply with the court`s earlier order regarding acceptance of the applications of overage candidates intending to appear in the SPSC examination.

A division bench at the SHC`s Hyderabad circuit bench comprising Justices Salahuddin Panhwar and Mohammad Iqbal Kalhoro passed the order after hearing the petition of 12 candidates, including Saleem Akhtar, Maqbool Ahmed, Niaz Ahmed, Ammara Aziz and Dr Noor Ahmed.

The petitioners` counsel, Advocate Noman Sahto, argued that the SPSC violated the Aug 15, 2013 SHC order by rejecting the application of candidate Saleem Akhtar.

He produced certain documents and Additional Advocate General for Sindh Allah Bachayo Soomro sought time to verify their validity.

The court ordered the office to communicate the Aug 15, 2013 order to the SPSC chairman with specificdirectives for its compliance.

`It is expected that Chairman SPSC will comply with the order passed in this petition,` said the bench.

On Aug 15, 2013 the court had observed that the matter needed a full-fledged hearing. It said that the respondents (SPSC authorities) shall receive applications of candidates as per a previous policy for posts in question but issuance of the letter for test and interview to those overage candidates shall be subject to the decision of this petition. The process in respect of applications of other candidates shallcontinuein accordance with the procedure.

The petitioners said that the upper age limit to the extent of 15 years was relaxed by the Sindh government till June 30, 2013. But the SPSC chairman mala fidely advertised posts in question with Aug 16 as the last date of submission of the applications.

The respondents tried to destroy the career of the petitioners and other candidates as to date the notiñcation for extension of age relaxation was not issued by them, they added.

They said in other provinces a similar relief wasextended. In Punjab, the combined competitive examination was being held every year but in Sindh it was held once in hve years due to which hundreds of candidates had become overage.

They added that currently the age limit set for the competitive examination of PCS2013 was 21 years to 28 years.

For competitive examination, qualification and experience were primary objectives and the age was something secondary whereas underprivileged students pursue part-time jobs and studied.

They said that while considering ground realities and disparity among youth, former Sindh chief minister Arbab Ghulam Rahim announced a general age relaxation through a Feb 12, 2005 notification and it was renewed until June 2013.

They said the incumbent CM Syed Qaim Ali Shah also issued the notification of age relaxation in continuance of the previous age relaxation notification on Feb 19, 2008, having 10 years of age relaxation but the same notification was renewed with 15 years of age relaxation on Dec 6, 2008 and onwards.

They said that the notifica-tion for 15 years age relaxation had lost validity in June 2013 and the same should be given effect for candidates.

They said since the Sindh government was holding competitive examination af ter five years, it must allow age relaxation of five years over and above the normal age of 40 years as per its previous policy and procedure.

They said that the respondents had given age relaxation to meritorious youth on multiple occasions while considering state of opportunities and sources of earning.

The same is being negated in 2013 SPSC examination and therespondentsfailedto justify non-maintainability of June 2013 notification of age relaxation, they added.

They asked the court to direct the respondents to maintain/uphold the notification of age relaxation issuedon June 30,2012.

They said that the discontinuation of the notification of age relaxation was unlawful, unconstitutional and against the principle of natural justice.

The SPSC should be directed to allow the petitioners to apply for the combined competitive examination.