The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court has scheduled a hearing for the appeal of 1,137 candidates who were excluded from the second oral exam of the 27th Bangladesh Civil Service (BCS).
The hearing will take place on December 4.
The Appellate Division, led by Chief Justice Dr Syed Refaat Ahmed and four other justices, accepted the appeal and set the date for the hearing.
This decision comes 14 years after the Appellate Division’s ruling, with the High Court granting leave to appeal at the review stage on Thursday.
Senior lawyers Salahuddin Dolon and Ruhul Kuddus Kajol represented the candidates, while Additional Attorney General Aneek Haque appeared for the state.
This order marks the opening of the doors for the appeal hearing, which will determine the fate of the 1,137 candidates excluded from the 27th BCS, as explained by the lawyers.
The first oral exam of the 27th BCS was canceled in 2007 by the Public Service Commission (PSC) during the caretaker government's time.
In response, several candidates, including Monir Hossain, filed a writ petition in the High Court challenging the decision.
After hearing the petition, the High Court bench, consisting of Justice Abdur Rashid and Justice Md Ashfaqul Islam, upheld the PSC’s decision to cancel the first oral exam on July 3, 2008. As a result, the second oral exam was conducted.
Candidates who failed the second exam, including Md. Sohel Rana, filed another writ petition in the High Court in 2008.
Later, the High Court bench of Justice Miftah Uddin Choudhury Rumi and Justice AB Siddiqui declared the second oral exam invalid on November 11, 2009.
The ruling directed that those who passed the first oral exam be appointed based on merit within three months, while those who passed the second exam and were already employed should be retained.
However, after the government filed three appeals against the High Court’s ruling, the full bench of the Appellate Division delivered its verdict on July 11, 2010.
The ruling upheld the High Court’s decision to cancel the first oral exam and declared it valid.
The Appellate Division also disposed of the government’s leave to appeal concerning the declaration of the second oral exam as invalid, finalizing the matter.
