The Jharkhand High Court has put on hold, until further orders, the state government’s decision to cancel appointments made through the 11th to 13th Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) civil services examination and the Food Safety Officer recruitment, saying the decision appeared to have been taken without following the principles of natural justice.Justice Deepak Roshan directed that candidates already appointed should not be removed until further orders. The court has sought a response from the government and asked it to explain what facts emerged during the CID investigation that led to the decision to cancel the appointments. The next hearing has been fixed for September 15.The court’s order came on petitions challenging a notification issued by the Personnel Department on August 18, cancelling the 11th to 13th JPSC civil services examination.Two petitioners, Deepmala and Sonam Kumari, challenged the government’s decision before the court. A third petition was filed by Saurav Singh and others against the cancellation of the Food Safety Officer examination conducted by the JPSC.The court’s interim protection also has implications for people appointed as Child Development Project Officers (CDPOs), although the CDPO matter itself was not before the court through a separate petition. The August 18 notification had also referred to the cancellation of CDPO appointments. Those already working in the posts, therefore, will not be removed until further orders.The case centres on what happened after the recruitment processes had been completed and the candidates appointed. During the hearing, counsel for the petitioners, Indrajit Sinha, Amritansh Vats and PAS Pati, questioned the government’s decision to cancel the appointments without first giving the affected candidates an opportunity to present their case.The petitioners argued that the appointments had been made after the prescribed selection process was completed. They said the government suddenly issued the August 18 notification cancelling the appointments, without giving the candidates an opportunity to be heard.Their argument was that removing people after their appointment would have a serious impact on their careers and future. They therefore sought the quashing of the government notification.The government, however, told the court that the matter had been investigated by the CID and that certain facts had emerged during the probe. Based on those findings, it said, the government had taken the decision after due consideration.The explanation prompted the court to seek greater clarity on the material behind the government’s action. It asked the state to disclose what facts had emerged in the CID investigation that were serious enough to result in the cancellation of the appointments.For now, the court’s order means that the appointments covered by the challenged notification remain protected from removal. The government will have to respond on September 15, including on the findings of the CID investigation that formed the basis of its decision to cancel the recruitments.