BANGLADESH

The High Court on Monday ordered authorities to suspend the process of the 33rd Bangladesh Civil Service (BCS) preliminary test for three weeks and asked why the circular should not be declared illegal.

Following a writ petition filed on Sunday by 20 candidates who applied online but did not get admit cards, the bench of justices Farid Ahmed and Sheikh Hassan Arif issued the orders.

"According to the High Court order, all sorts of activities of the 33rd BCS will remain halted for three weeks," petitioners' lawyer A K M Fayez told bdnews24.com.

"The court wanted to know why the BCS circular with the condition of online application only should not be declared illegal," he said.

The court also asked why the Public Service Commission (PSC) would not be given directives to allow the applicants, who did not get their admit cards, to sit the test slated for June 1.

The court ordered the PSC chairman, Cabinet secretary, PSC's examination controller and Teletalk chairman to respond in one week.

"We told the court that the deprived applicants are at no fault. They applied in proper time. They cannot be deprived for the problem in Teletalk server. They did not get recourse even after appealing to the PSC chairman," Fayez said.

"In line with law, applications with the process to fill up online forms do not give everyone equal opportunity, which is contradictory to Section 29 of the constitution. The Section says everyone will have to be given equal opportunity in appointments," he added.

On Feb 29, the PSC published the circular for the test to fill up 4,206 vacant posts.

Amidst threat by applicants who did not get admit cards to move the High Court, the PSC had announced on Apr 10 that the 33rd BCS preliminary test will be held on June 1.

According to the PSC, 183,627 applicants have applied online from Mar 8 to Apr 7 for the 33rd BCS. This is first time BCS candidates have submitted applications online. The fee for the test was Tk 500.

State-owned mobile-phone operator Teletalk was assigned the task to collect the money submitted by candidates using its SMS service.

Teletalk said money of some 13,500 candidates could not be deposited as the pressure on the server was at its peak in the last two days as 50,000 candidates applied on those days.

The PSC argued that those who failed to submit the fee will not be allowed to take the test as 'the commission had alerted them about the pressure on the server by the end of the deadline to submit applications'.

Hours before the PSC announcement to hold the preliminary test, eight to 10 aspirants who had failed to get admit cards even after filling up online forms at a media conference threatened to move the High Court if they were not allowed chance to sit the test.

Apart from Fayez, lawyers Mostafizur Rahman and Parvin Hannan stood for the petitioners while assistant attorney general Samarendra Nath Biswas stood for the government.

Applications for cadre service jobs have to be submitted online from the next Bangladesh Civil Service (BCS) examinations, an official has said.

Public Service Commission (PSC) controller of examinations (cadre) I E M Nesaruddin told : "Job applications have to be sent online starting the 33rd BCS examinations. Likewise, admit cards can also be collected online."

"Sufferings of the job aspirants will get immensely with the introduction of online application system," he said.

Nesaruddin said PCS has signed a contract to this effect with public-sector mobile phone operator Teletalk."

The agreement was inked with the consent of the finance minister, he said adding: "Application forms can be filled up through the PSC and Teletalk websites."

The PSC official said there would be instructions for filling up various parts of the forms. Applicant's copy will be seen and each applicant given an invoice number on filling up the form.

"The applicant can pay the exam fee through Teletalk mobile phone using the invoice number. Once the fee is paid, the aspirant will get a registration number. Then the applicant can download admit card using the invoice and registration numbers."

If anyone loses the admit card, it can be downloaded again, Nesaruddin said.

He hinted that circular for the 33rd BCS exams could be published late February or early March.

The PSC official said colour photos of the examinees would be affixed to the attendance book apart from the admit cards.

The Public Service Commission (PSC) will not defer the date of the written test of the 31st Bangladesh Civil Service (BCS) from Oct 5.

PSC public relations officer Mir Mosharraf Hossain on Sunday said that the PSC would like to change the examination date from Oct 5.

"But, it's not possible as there are some complications over getting examination halls for the test."

"The written test for Bangla second paper will take place on time that day," he said.

Hindu applicants have been demanding a delay to the test as it comes up right after their biggest religious festival Durga Puja. The festival would end on Oct 6.

Quoting PSC chairman Saadat Husain, Mosharraf said, "PSC was thinking about changing the date to Oct 10. But, we won't be able to manage examination halls due to the pre-scheduled Junior School Certificate (JSC) examinations."

The written test for the 31st BCS began form Sep 26 this year.