STATE TIMES NEWS
JAMMU: Owing to contrarian legal opinion and lacunas in the move to reconstitute Jammu and Kashmir Public Service Commission in the wake of bifurcation of the erstwhile state into two Union Territories of J&K and Ladakh, the government is mulling to withdraw the instructions issued by the General Administration Department last month.
Sources told STATE TIMES that the rethinking about giving up the move has dawned after strong resentment within the Union Territory and legal experts describing the GAD communication legally invalid, as the Presidential Order cannot apply to the Chairman and Members of the J&K PSC since the J&K Re-Organisation Bill-2019 clearly protects their continuation.

EXCLUSIVE

Constitutional experts, sources said, believe that the Chairman and the Members of the J&K PSC cannot be removed or any reconstitution of the Commission undertaken as per the Section 103 of the J&K Reorgansiation Act, which clearly amplifies that President can remove any difficulty arising out of the implementation of the provisions of the Act, condition being the removal of difficulty should not be inconsistent with provisions of the Act.
“Under section 103 of J&K Re-organisation Act, President can remove a difficulty arising out of implementation of provision of the Act, condition being that the removal of difficulty should not be inconsistent with provisions of the Act.
Sub-Section 1 of Section says, “The Public Service Commission for the existing State of Jammu and Kashmir shall, on and from the appointed day, be the Public Service Commission for the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. It has clarified in Sub Section (2) that the Union Public Service Commission, with the approval of the President shall serve the needs of the Union Territory of Ladakh.
The GAD in its communication to Secretary J&K Public Service Commission has invoked Section 93 of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act-2019 which relates to the PDC and matters thereto, as also Section 16 of the J&K Reorganisation (Removal of Difficulties) Order 2019, notified vide S.O No 3912 (E) dated 30th October, 2019, which reads, “(16) Any person who has taken an oath or made an affirmation before holding office or position as such under the Constitution of Jammu and Kashmir or any other law in force in the existing State of Jammu and Kashmir immediately before the appointed day shall be deemed to have taken such oath or affirmation under the Constitution of India or any other law applicable to the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir and the Union Territory of Ladakh, and shall continue to hold office or position as such till the appointed day”.
The constitutional experts take exception to the GAD communication to Secretary PSC, saying this is in disharmony between J&K Re-Organisation Act and the Presidential Order for removing difficulties in implementation of the Re-organisation law.
After taking cognizance over the overwhelming resentment and views of the constitutional experts, the sources said the Jammu and Kashmir Government is contemplating to rescind its communication of 21 November 2019.