Chief Secretary Ashok Jaitley admits Owais has been appointed in relaxation of rules. ``But there are only a few such cases in the huge 42,000 appointments the government has made,'' Jaitley says. ``I did resist. It shouldn't have happened''.

Talking to The Indian Express, the minister claimed that Owais had been appointed on his merit as he was an outstanding sportsperson with certificates of proficiency awarded by the Sports Council. ``It is unfortunate that this boy happens to be the son of a politician. I would have liked him to stay at home. But he had himself applied to the General Administrative Department for his appointment a year ago and got the job,'' Shafi says.

A senior officerin the state tourism department, however, says that a vacancy of assistant tourist officer, highest non-gazetted post in the department, was transferred from Srinagar to its Mumbai office to facilitate the appointment of the minister's son. However, Shafi claims that a vacant post of senior receptionist was upgraded to assistant tourist officer.

This out-of-turn appointment comes in the wake of the Government appointing a relative of the Chief Minister's security officer as assistant director in the Hospitality and Protocol Department in relaxation of rules.

Secretary General, Administrative Department, G Q Parrey, says the order had the Chief Minister's approval. Parrey says there's no criterion for appointment in relaxation of rules. ``It is the discretion of the Government. However, we see the public interest''.

In a similar case, the Government relaxed rules to appoint transport minister B A Kitchlo's daughter, Rifat, as supervisor, Social Welfare Department. To quote a few other instances offavouritism, Nazir Ahmad Wani, a higher secondary lecturer was appointed as project officer, ICDS in the Social Welfare Department. He is related to a Cabinet minister.

Mohammad Ayub, public relations officer (PRO) of the minister of medical education, Dr Mustafa Kamal, started his career as an employee in the State Motor Garages.

He was promoted to the rank of a stenographer and the file of his promotion as administrative officer is to be approved anytime now. Ayub used his contacts with the minister and got his father Abdul Rashid Dar, who had retired from government service, re-employed as Motor Transport Officer in the India Population Project.

Interestingly, the Supreme Court, in a case J&K Public Service Commission Vs Dr Narinder Mohan and others, in 1994 ruled: ``The rules prescribed direct recruitment/promotion by selection as the mode of recruitment which would be done only by public service commission or promotion committee duely constituted and by no other body''. In another similar casewhere Ishrat Ara was appointed as publicity officer in the forest department after relaxing the rules, the State High Court ordered the Government to give the same status to the petitioner, another employee, as was given to Ishrat.

The Court, however, did not set aside her appointment on humanitarian grounds and ruled: ``The respondent has continued in service for almost nine years. ``She must have become ineligible for any other government job.

``Age factor would go against her. As such adopting humanitarian approach, her appointment has not been set aside''.