Andhra Pradesh High Court - Amravati
Keerthi Datla And Others vs Gogireddy Venkata Lakshmi And Others on 11 February, 2026
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APHC010136412024
IN THE HIGH COURT OF ANDHRA PRADESH
AT AMARAVATI [3545]
(Special Original Jurisdiction)
WEDNESDAY,THE ELEVENTH DAY OF FEBRUARY
TWO THOUSAND AND TWENTY SIX
PRESENT
THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE BATTU DEVANAND
THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE A. HARI HARANADHA SARMA
WRIT APPEAL NO: 271/2024
Keerthi Datla and Others ...Appellant(s)
Vs.
Gogireddy Venkata Lakshmi and Others ...Respondent(s)
**********
Advocate for Appellant: MOGULURU ISWARYA
Advocate(s) for Respondent(s): GP FOR SERVICES I, CHALASANI
AJAY KUMAR, V VENKATA NAGA
RAJU, GUTTA NAVEEN KUMAR
IA NO: 1 OF 2025
Petition under Section 151 CPC praying that in the circumstances stated in
the affidavit filed in support of the petition, the High Court may be pleased
pleased to direct the Andhra Pradesh Public Service Commission (APPSC) to
forthwith produce before this Hon'ble Court, and simultaneously preserve
without deletion, overwriting, or alteration, the entire record pertaining to the
Group-I Mains Examination valuation under Notification No. 27/2018, including
(a) CCTV footage/NVR media with indexed time-stamps, strong-room/custody
registers, security deployment records, and chain-of-custody documents relating
to the valuation arrangements at Avasa Resorts/Haailand, Chinnakakani (522
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508) for the period 06.12.2021 to 13.02.2022; (b) the complete list of
faculty/evaluators/examiners engaged for such valuation together with
deputation/appointment letters, relieving orders from parent institutions, daily
attendance registers and sign-in sheets, subject-wise allocation sheets,
examiner codes, chief examiner reports, honorarium/payme nt disbursement
records, and any minutes of meetings, notes, or communications evidencing the
process of selection of evaluators; and (c) to serve indexed copies of the
aforesaid CCTV footage, evaluator lists, and all connected documents on all
parties to enable effective participation in the appeals; and to pass
Counsel for the Appellant(S):
1. MOGULURU ISWARYA
Counsel for the Respondent(S):
1. GP FOR SERVICES I
2. CHALASANI AJAY KUMAR
3. V VENKATA NAGA RAJU
4. GUTTA NAVEEN KUMAR
The Court made the following:
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THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE BATTU DEVANAND
And
THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE A. HARI HARANADHA SARMA
I.A.No.1 of 2025 in
W.A.NO.271 OF 2024
ORDER :(Per Hon'ble Sri Justice Battu Devanand) I. Introductory:
Questioning the orders passed in a batch of Writ Petitions vide W.P.No.15701, 15757, 15765, 15844, 16646, 21894, 15745, 15758, 15806, 15750 of 2022, the Andhra Pradesh Public Service Commission (APPSC) and the selected candidates filed Writ Appeals Nos.258, 259, 269, 271, 274, 277, 279, 287, 314, 317, 318, 319, 338, 339, 341, 342, 343, 344, 345, 348, 349, 354, 357, 358, 360, 362, 363, 364, 369, 370, 371, 372, 373, 374, 375, 376, 377, 407, 420 and 442 of 2024.
2. After reserving the matters for judgment, the matters were posted for some clarification. At that stage, this application is filed by the appellants in W.A.No.271 of 2024.
3. This application is filed with a prayer to direct the Andhra Pradesh Public Service Commission (APPSC) to forthwith produce before this Court, and simultaneously preserve without deletion, overwriting, or alteration, the entire 4 record pertaining to the Group-I Mains examination valuation under Notification No.27/2018, including -
(a) CCTV footage/NVR media with indexed time-stamps, strong-
room/custody registers, security deployment records, and chain-of-custody registers, security deployment records, and chain-of-custody documents relating to the valuation arrangements at Avasa Resorts/Hailand, Chinnakakani for the period from 06.12.2021 to 13.02.2022;
(b) the complete list of faculty/evaluators/examiners engaged for such valuation together with deputation/appointment letters, relieving orders from parent institutions, daily attendance registers and sing-in sheets, subject-wise allocation sheets, examiner codes, chief-examiner reports, honorarium/payment disbursement records, and any minutes of meetings, notes, or communications evidencing the process of selection of evaluators; and
(c) to serve indexed copies of the aforesaid CCTV footage, evaluator lists, and all connected documents on all parties to enable effective participation in the appeals and to pass such other orders as this Court may deem fit in the interest of justice.
Discussion and Reasoning:-
4. The aspects relevant, in brief, for considering the present application is as follows:-
i. Pointing out certain illegalities and irregularities by APPSC in the process of valuation of Group-I services, Main Examination, the Writ Petitions vide W.P.No.15701 of 2022 and batch, were filed seeking to declare the action 5 of the Respondents in evaluating the performance of candidates in Main Written Examination held for Group I Services by Notification No.27/2018 dated 31.12.2018 of the 2nd Respondent -APPSC by adopting different standard of evaluation consequent up on passing of Judgment in WP Nos.11000 of 2021 and Batch dated 01.10.2021 and consequential publication of results thereof on 26.05.2022 in the APPSC website as unconstitutional, arbitrary, illegal and consequently to set aside the same.
ii. The Writ Petitions were allowed by the learned Single Judge directing the APPSC to conduct Group-I (Mains) Examination afresh for Notification No.27/2018, on the grounds, inter alia others,
(a) There was more than one valuation against the Rules.
(b) The valuation was done at private place through private agency against the norms and the answer scripts were kept at private place for a period of more than 60 days, without proper authority.
(c) The entire valuation process is clouded with illegalities and irregularities.
(d) There is abnormal difference in the list of selected candidates between the valuation done through digital process and the physical process.
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5. [i] It is submitted across the bar on behalf of the APPSC by the Advocate General that the record as has been ordered is already produced and with regard to the records pertaining to the Hailand are not available.
[ii] The fact of non-production of the records pertaining to Avasa resorts/Hailand will be examined at appropriate time, as to what kind of inference can be drawn, particularly in the light of the material in the form of affidavit etc., available.
[iii] With regard to furnishing list of evaluators it is relevant to note the observations of Hon'ble Apex Court in a case between Kerala Public Service Commission and Others Vs. State Information Commission 1 (vide para 8). It was a case of Public Service Commission, taken up appointing the examiners to evaluate the answer papers, it is observed by the Hon'ble Apex Court that, there exists Principal and Agent relationship and when the Principal has entrusted the task of evaluating the answer sheet to the examiners, they stands in agent relationship and there exists fiduciary relationship. Therefore, the information shared between them is not liable to be disclosed.
[iv] In this context, it is also relevant to note that long back in the counter affidavit filed on behalf of the Public Service Commission at Writ Petition stage, there was clear assertion as to the process adopted and short listing of 1 2016 (3) SCC 417 7 examiners, addressing of letters to the Universities and Commissioner of Collegiate Education, making of arrangements with regard to spot valuation camps etc.. The information is sought, at this stage, long after disposal of the Writ Petition as well as the conclusion of the arguments in the Writ Appeal and after posting the matter for the purpose of clarification, and after filing a re-open application. Therefore, in the facts and circumstances, the effort in the application filed is found as an attempt to fish for some material, at advanced stage of the matter and such an exercise, is not permissible.
[v] In I.A.Nos.5 and 6 of 2025 in W.A.No.274 of 2024, separate orders are passed addressing the aspects relating to examination of OMR sheets and the answer scripts etc.,.
[vi] With regard to the C.C. T.V. footage etc., it was submitted by Advocate General that there is no C.C. footage with APPSC with regard to the things happened at Avasa resorts/Hailand.
[vii] Therefore, no order can be passed in the present application and the same is liable to be dismissed.
[viii] Accordingly, I.A.No.1 of 2025 is dismissed.
__________________________ JUSTICE BATTU DEVANAND __________________________________ JUSTICE A.HARI HARANADHA SARMA Dated: 11 .02.2026 Pnr 8 THE HON'BLE SRI JUSTICE BATTU DEVANAND & THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE A. HARI HARANADHA SARMA I.A.No.1 of 2025 in W.A.NO.271 OF 2024 Dt. 11.02.2026 Pnr