Bombay High Court Rejects Plea To Restrain PSBs From Disqualifying Candidates On Past Misconduct, Upholds Autonomy In Recruitment Policy

The Bombay High Court (Aurangabad Bench) has held that Public Sector Banks (PSBs) are autonomous entities entitled to prescribe their own eligibility and disqualification criteria and the mere absence of a uniform instruction from the Government of India does not render such conditions arbitrary.The Court observed that it cannot interfere with the recruitment choices of the Banks unless a specific recruitment condition is shown to be arbitrary, discriminatory, or violative of constitutional guarantees. A division bench of Justices Vibha Kankanwadi and Hiten S. Venegavkar thus dismissed a plea seeking to restrain banks from disqualifying candidates on the basis of past misconduct. The writ petition was filed by a candidate who challenged the rejection of his candidature pursuant to a recruitment advertisement issued by IDBI Bank. The petitioner had earlier been employed with Maharashtra Gramin Bank and was removed from service by an order dated 26th April 2024, which recorded that such removal would not operate as a disqualification for future employment. However, his candidature for recruitment at IDBI Bank was rejected due to his past disciplinary removal.The petitioner had earlier been employed with Maharashtra Gramin Bank and was removed from service by an order dated 26 April 2024, which recorded that such removal would not operate as a disqualification for future employment. His candidature for recruitment in IDBI Bank was rejected on account of his past disciplinary removal.The petitioner contended that there was no centralised rule or notification issued by the Government of India permanently barring persons who had undergone disciplinary punishment from future employment in public sector banks. He argued that the rejection amounted to a "second punishment" and violated Articles 14, 16, and 21 of the Constitution.The Court, however, rejected his contention, holding that a direction to restrain all public sector banks from incorporating disqualification clauses would amount to "judicially mandating uniformity" across diverse institutions."Public sector banks, though instrumentalities of the state within the meaning of Article 12, are distinct legal entities with separate boards, service regulations, and recruitment process", the Court stated, emphasizing the autonomy of these institutions.The Court observed that the mere absence of a uniform instruction issued by the Government of India does not ipso facto render a recruitment condition adopted by a bank arbitrary or unconstitutional.Addressing the petitioner's reliance on his termination order, the Court distinguished between 'eligibility' and 'suitability'. It held that a clause stating removal is not a disqualification; it only implies that the candidate is not legally ineligible and does not confer an enforceable right to be considered suitable."Suitability is a multifaceted concept, and antecedents, integrity, and past conduct are legitimate considerations... It is well settled that policy choices in matters of recruitment...lie primarily within the domain of the employer", the Bench remarked.The Court further held that the petitioner essentially sought a declaration that past disciplinary punishment can never be a ground for disqualification, which would "trench upon the policy-making domain of the executive and the autonomy of public sector banks".The Court also rejected the plea of double jeopardy, holding that denial of appointment on the basis of past misconduct does not amount to a second punishment and that Article 20(2) of the Constitution has no application to recruitment decisions.Accordingly, the High Court dismissed the writ petition, holding that no arbitrariness, illegality, or unconstitutionality was made out to warrant interference.Case Title: Kapil v. Union of India & Anr. [WRIT PETITION NO. 15495 OF 2025]Click Here To Read/Download Order

Bombay High Court Rejects Plea To Restrain PSBs From Disqualifying Candidates On Past Misconduct, Upholds Autonomy In Recruitment Policy

Saksham Vaishya

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