' SYED MANSOOR ALI SHAH, J.--- Brief facts of the case are that the petitioners are Civil Judges and members of the Punjab Judicial Service. Recent amendment in the Punjab Judicial Service Rules, 1994 ("Rules") now allows Senior Civil Judges and Civil Judges-cum-Magistrates ("CJs") with ten years" service experience to apply for the post of Additional District and Sessions Judge ("AD&SJ") against forty percent of the available vacancies to be filled through initial recruitment.
2. Petitioners seek interpretation of this concession granted to the Civil Judges under Rule 5(3) (b) of the Rules to the extent of the scope and meaning of ten years' service experience. They contend that ten years service experience for CJs include two years of practice as an advocate. Referring to Rule 7(1) (ii) of the Rules they submit that the requirement of "actively practiced the profession of law for not less than two years after having enrolled as an Advocate" is a qualifying requirement to be appointed as a CJ and, therefore, an essential part of the service experience. They also submit by referring to Rule 5(3)(a) that while in case of the Advocates, the practice at the bar is being considered as a part of qualification for recruitment, denial of the same qualification to the petitioners is discriminatory and without any lawful justification.
3. Learned Law Officer on the other hand submits that the Rule in question is in addition to 60% promotion quota to the post of AD&SJ exclusively reserved for members of the judicial service. He contends that service experience entails 10 years of judicial experience only. He referred to the recommendations of the Administrative Committee of this Court dated 12-11-2013 wherein it was proposed that experience be of ten years as a judicial officer.
4. I have heard the arguments of the parties and have gone through the record and the relevant law.
5. Rule 5(3) of Punjab Judicial Service Rules, 1994 before amendment provided that appointment to the post of AD&SJ be through promotion to the extent of 60% (promotion quota) from amongst the CJs with ten years' service as judicial officers and 40% through initial recruitment (initial recruitment quota) from amongst the members of the Bar with ten years' standing as an advocate. Amendment introduced by the Governor of the Punjab through Notification dated 9-5- 2014 has substituted Rule 5(3) in the following manner:--- ' In Rule 5, for sub-rule (3), the following shall be substituted:---
(3) Appointment to the post of Additional District and Sessions Judge shall be made to the extent of forty per cent of the available vacancies through initial recruitment from:
(a) members of the Bar with ten years' standing as Advocate; or
(b) Senior Civil Judges and Civil Judges-cum-Magistrates with ten years' service experience."
6. According to the amended Rule, Senior Civil Judges and CJs are also entitled to appointment to the post of AD&SJ by availing the initial recruitment quota to the extent of 40% of the available vacancies. CJs qualify for initial recruitment to the post of AD&SJ if they have ten years' service experience. It is submitted that the service experience of the petitioner includes 8 years of service and two years of standing as a lawyer.
7. Rule 7(1)(a)(ii) provides the qualifications for a person to be appointed to the post of a CJ requires that he has "actively practiced the profession of law for not less than two years after having been enrolled as an Advocate." Two years of active practice is an essential part of the terms and conditions of appointment to the post of CJ. Two years of active practice at the bar is a professional experience which cannot be ignored while tabulating the service experience of a CJ. It would have been different if the minimum requirement of two years of active practice was not there and a person could have been appointed as CJ after becoming an advocate. Any one striving to become a CJ has to spend two years in active practice, which, therefore, becomes part of the experience required to become a CJ.
8. Another dimension is that while practice at the Bar is a valid qualification for an advocate aspiring to apply for the post of AD&SJ, the same professional experience is being disregarded in the case of a judicial officer who too has completed a minimum of two years of active practice at the Bar. Any such treatment borders on discrimination and cannot be sustained. Practice at the Bar is foundational professional experience, which is always considered as qualifications for judicial appointment. Even appointments to the superior judiciary under Articles 177 and 193 of the Constitution recognize this experience.
9. Minutes of the meeting of the Examination Committee dated 13-1-2012 reveals that they recommended the following amendment to the Rules:--- "However, in order to offer an opportunity to the brilliant Civil Judges, the Committee recommends to place the matter before the Hon'ble Administration Committee for making amendment in the Punjab Judicial Service Rules, 1994 with regard to qualification for the post of Additional District and Sessions Judge while also permitting a Serving Civil Judge with at least ten years experience including minimum 8 years service as Judicial Officer." (emphasis supplied)
10. The Administrative Committee approved the recommendation of the Examination Committee of this Court in the following manner:--- "Recommendations dated 13-1-2012 made by Examination Committee perused. It was resolved to make amendment in the Punjab Judicial Service Rules, 1994 for giving permission to serving Civil Judges-cum-Magistrates to appear in the competitive examination against the posts of Additional District and Sessions Judges from the quota of Bar with at least ten years experience as Judicial Officer having no adverse PER and subject to prior permission of the competent authority for applying for the said post. For making afore-said amendment in the Rules the case be placed before the Competent Authority." (emphasis supplied)
11. The amendment made by the Governor in Rule 5(3)(b) is limited to "ten years' service.
Experience' which understandably is not the same as ten years experience as a judicial officer. The view expressed by the Examination Committee appears to have been carried in the Rules.
12. I, therefore, hold that ten years' service experience under amended Rule 5(3)(b) includes a maximum of two years of active practice at the bar after which a person is qualified to be appointed as a CJ. The petitioners and similarly placed judicial officers in Punjab are entitled to apply for the post of AD&SJ and the concerned authorities are directed to accept their applications and process their case in accordance with law so that the petitioners can sit in the examinations which, C according to the petitioners are coming up soon.
13. For the above reasons this petition is allowed.