SRINAGAR — The Jammu and Kashmir Public Service Commission (JKPSC), the constitutional body responsible for recruitment to gazetted posts and several other key personnel functions, is facing a serious institutional vacuum following the retirement of its Chairman, Arun Kumar Choudhary, and continued vacancies in the Commission.
Choudhary, who was appointed Chairman in February 2024, attained the age of 62 earlier this month, bringing his tenure to an end. The Commission’s official website now lists only Dr Rajiv Singh and Asaf Mehmood Sagar as serving members.
The situation has raised concern among aspirants awaiting recruitment at different stages, particularly at a time when a substantial number of selections remain pending before the Commission.
Recruitment backlog
According to information obtained through an RTI application, 1,455 posts notified by JKPSC between August 2019 and August 2025 were still awaiting completion of the selection process. The pending positions include 594 lecturer posts in the School Education Department, 90 posts under the Combined Competitive Examination-2024, and 118 Assistant Professor posts in government medical colleges.
The backlog is significant because JKPSC is entrusted with recruitment to a wide range of gazetted positions, including administrative, engineering, medical, teaching and other professional posts, besides conducting competitive examinations and selection processes.
The Commission also plays a role in conducting interviews where prescribed under recruitment rules, preparing selection lists, making recommendations for appointments, participating in Departmental Promotion Committee (DPC) proceedings, and advising the government on recruitment, promotion and service-related issues.
Quorum concerns
The present shortage of members is particularly significant because the JKPSC Business and Procedure Rules, 2021, prescribe a quorum for meetings empowered to take decisions on recruitment processes and DPC matters. The rules have previously been cited in connection with situations where inadequate membership affected the Commission’s ability to transact business.
The Commission has a sanctioned strength of a Chairman and eight members. In June 2024, the government appointed three members — Dr Rajiv Singh, Tariq Ahmad Zargar and Yashpal Kotwal — after the Commission had faced a prolonged shortage of members. Of those appointed in 2024, Zargar subsequently moved out of the Commission and took charge as Director of Information and Public Relations, while the Commission’s present website lists only Singh and Sagar as members.
The current situation echoes past institutional difficulties faced by JKPSC when vacancies among its Chairman and members affected its ability to transact recruitment and promotion-related business. In 2022, the Commission similarly faced a situation in which its strength fell below the required quorum, with reports at the time warning that recruitment and DPC proceedings could be brought to a standstill.
Aspirants seek intervention
The latest developments have triggered concern among job aspirants, who told the news agency KNT that continued vacancies at the top of the Commission could further delay recruitment processes already pending at different stages.
Aspirants have urged Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and the Chief Secretary of Jammu and Kashmir to intervene and ensure the immediate appointment of a Chairman and sufficient members so that the Commission can function with the required quorum and take decisions on pending recruitment and promotion matters.
Recent performance
The concern comes despite the Commission having reported significant recruitment activity during 2025-26. Its 67th Annual Report, submitted to the Lieutenant Governor earlier this month, stated that JKPSC had made 1,152 selections against 1,263 posts referred to it during the year.
However, the existing recruitment backlog and the present shortage at the Commission’s top level have renewed questions over the continuity of the recruitment process and the need for timely filling of constitutional vacancies.
Efforts to contact Chief Secretary Atul Daloo for comment did not materialise.
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