Constitutional Bodies: State PSCs and Article 311

What is a State Public Service Commission?

Imagine a school sports trial. The coach (the government) wants to pick players, but a neutral panel (the SPSC) runs the trial so that no one is picked only because they know the coach. Once picked, a player cannot be dropped without being told why and heard first. That is Article 311.

The SPSC is a constitutional body, which means it is created by the Constitution itself, not by an ordinary law. So a state government cannot simply abolish it.

Appointment, term and removal

• Who appoints (Article 316): the Governor appoints the Chairman and members. The Constitution does not fix the number; the Governor decides it.
• Who qualifies: as nearly as possible, half the members must have held office under the Union or a state government for at least 10 years.
• Term: six years or until the age of 62, whichever comes first. UPSC members serve until 65.
• Who removes (Article 317): only the President, not the Governor. For misbehaviour, the President must first send the case to the Supreme Court for an inquiry. Other grounds are being insolvent (unable to pay debts), taking up other paid work, or being unfit due to infirmity of mind or body.
• Suspension: while the Supreme Court inquiry runs, the Governor can suspend the member.

This split is on purpose. The Governor appoints, but removal needs the President and the Supreme Court, so a state government cannot easily punish a member for being fair.

Safeguards for independence

• Article 318: the Governor sets service conditions, but cannot make them worse after appointment.
• Article 319: after their term, an SPSC Chairman can become Chairman or member of the UPSC, or Chairman of another SPSC, but cannot take any other government job. A member can move up to Chairman of an SPSC, or to the UPSC.
• Article 322: salaries and expenses are charged on the Consolidated Fund of the State, which means they are paid without a vote in the state legislature.

What does an SPSC do?

• Article 320: conducts exams for state services and advises on recruitment methods, promotions, transfers and disciplinary matters.
• Article 321: the state legislature can give it extra functions.
• Article 323: it sends a yearly report to the Governor. The report goes to the legislature with a note explaining any case where the government did not accept the advice.

The advice is not binding, meaning the government may reject it. But it has to explain that rejection in public.

Joint State PSC (JSPSC): two or more states can share one. Parliament creates it by law, only if the state legislatures pass a resolution asking for it. Its members are appointed by the President, not the Governor.

Article 311: protection for civil servants

Article 310 says government servants hold office “during the pleasure” of the President or Governor. This is the doctrine of pleasure, which means the job can in theory be ended at the government’s will. Article 311 puts limits on this.

• Article 311(1): a person cannot be dismissed or removed by an authority lower than the one that appointed them.
• Article 311(2): no dismissal, removal or reduction in rank (demotion) without an inquiry, in which the person is told the charges and given a reasonable chance to be heard.

Who is covered: members of the civil services of the Union or a state, the all-India services such as the IAS, and holders of civil posts. Defence personnel are not covered.

The three exceptions in Article 311(2)

• (a) Criminal conviction: if the person is convicted in a criminal case, no inquiry is needed.
• (b) Not reasonably practicable: the authority records in writing why an inquiry cannot be held, for example if witnesses are threatened.
• (c) Security of the State: the President or Governor is satisfied that holding an inquiry is not wise for national security.

Under Article 311(3), the authority’s decision on exception (b) is final. In Union of India v Tulsiram Patel (1985), the Supreme Court upheld these exceptions but said courts can still check whether they were used properly.

The 42nd Amendment (1976) removed the second chance to argue against the proposed penalty, so now there is one hearing, during the inquiry.

Current issues

• Paper leaks and cancelled exams in several states have hurt trust in SPSCs.
• The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024 is a central law for exams such as UPSC and SSC. States such as Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh have their own laws for state exams.
• Delays and court cases mean many posts stay empty for years.

What UPSC asks: who appoints versus who removes SPSC members, the Article 311(2) exceptions, and whether SPSCs need reform after paper leaks.