India, July 15 -- In a major relief to aspirants across Jammu and Kashmir, the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT), Jammu Bench, has stayed the enforcement of a provision in the Jammu and Kashmir Revenue (Subordinate) Service Recruitment Rules, 2009, that mandated "Graduation with knowledge of Urdu" as a compulsory qualification for the post of Naib Tehsildar.

According to the order issued by a bench comprising Member (A) Ram Mohan Johri and Member (J) Rajinder Singh Dogra, the Urdu language condition as being "ultra vires the Constitution of India", citing violations of the principles of equality and non-discrimination.

The applicants argued that the 2009 rules unfairly excluded otherwise eligible candidates who are proficient in one...