Interview of Harleen Hira, PCS(J) Rank 3 & HCS(J) Rank 4.

  • Congratulations for your achievement Ms. Harleen. Could you please introduce yourself for our readers?

Thank you so much. I am Harleen Hira, alumni of Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law, Punjab, 2018. I have completed my secondary education from Samrala in district Ludhiana, Punjab which is also my native place and state respectively. Thereafter, I completed my senior secondary education from Bhavan Vidyalaya Chandigarh. In the year 2018 and 2019, I appeared for judicial service examinations conducted by the Delhi and Punjab & Haryana High court. With the grace of God, I have cleared Punjab and Haryana Judicial Service examination in the first attempt itself.  

  • What motivated you to choose judicial services as your career option?

After my 12TH class, I took Economic (hons.) at Delhi University. After entering the course, it became clear to me that I am not going to enjoy this field or the subject related work for life. I was always intrigued by society oriented subjects and that’s where “Law” proved to be a good career option. I decided to give CLAT examination and was allocated NLU Patiala. In the college during various internships and participation in seminars and lectures, it became clear to me that I wanted to enter into judicial services. Another factor that was relevant in making my decision for preparing for judicial services was the recognition and platform to learn things on my own that the services will provide.

  • Can you please tell us how your experience at the law school was? What role did the curriculum at your college play in your achievement and how it nurtured your zeal to go for judiciary examination?

As I told earlier, the decision to opt for judiciary was made in the University itself. It had a huge role to play in the development of my ability as well as legal acumen. The credit of the fact that I could crack judicial exams in the very first attempt goes to my University. Due to the syllabus and the faculty there, my basic concepts of law were already clear even before I entered formal judiciary preparation. I could perceive the difference as a lot of people I knew, who gave a lot of mains examination but could not clear it due to their writing style and approach.

  • How did you strategize your preparation for the preliminary and mains examination of HCS/PCS Judicial Services?

My strategy to clear prelims was to learn the bare acts and remember them on fingertips along with recent developments of law. I revised the bare acts and landmarks cases multiple times before appearing for any preliminary examination. In DJS due to its lengthy nature, I paid special heed to the clock since it is super lengthy but apart from it in any preliminary examination, I encountered no paucity of time. I solved books for MCQ (Universal and Singhal) as they weed out the silly mistakes while attempting preliminary exam of any judiciary examination.

For the mains examination, I relied on my notes, traditional books, Rahul’s Law notes and various online sites. I did not make the mistake of depending on a single source for the preparation of the mains examination. I will give an example. A question related on “further investigation” came in my Judiciary mains which I had read from “Live Law”. I was able to answer that question to the best of my knowledge because I did not limit myself to information from standard books alone. One should never make the mistake of studying only from one single source or one book. Lastly, one should make the notes of most important topics as they come in handy during revision.

  • Can you share the list of books and other materials that you went through while preparing for PCS and HCS Judicial Services?

For Haryana and Punjab Judicial services my book choices for major law subjects were as follows:-

  • Indian Penal Code:- P.S.A Pillai
  • Criminal Procedure Code:- R.V. Kelkar
  • Civil Procedure Code Takwani
  • Hindu law :- Poonam Pradhan Saxena, Kusum and Paras Diwan
  • Muslim law:- Aqil Ahmed
  • Transfer of Property Act:- R.K Sinha
  • Indian Contract Act:- A.K Jain
  • Indian Evidence Act:- M. Monir and Avtar Singh

I comprehensively made notes from the books along with my class notes which helped me a great deal in revision before the mains examinations. I did refer to A.K Jain’s books and Rahul Law’s coaching material during my preparation.

  • Do you suggest that preparation for preliminary and mains examination should be done separately or should be done collectively for the judicial examination as a whole?

One thing that must be fixed in a candidate’s mind is that mains and prelims examination of any judiciary exam are not watertight compartments. They are complimentary and most of the times overlap with each other. A candidate has to remember some of the very important sections for mains exam eventually so it’s better to prepare in a wholesome way right from the start. Law subjects should be studied comprehensively as a whole covering the entire concepts, case laws and sections.

  • During the preparation, a candidate might go through self-doubt due to the stiff competition around him/her. How did you handle such a negative situation? What are your views regarding the removal of this self-doubt?

Haryana Judiciary’s initial result (before the SC inquiry) was first mains which I couldn’t clear. For a week I was disappointed but then I gathered my courage and with a big heart accepted that I need to see myself in the list, next time any result is published. I pushed myself hard and started to read with aim of in depth understanding of the law. In this new zeal, Punjab University’s L.L.M course and the environment of the library helped me a lot. I solved all the previous year question papers of both Punjab and Haryana Judiciary and slowly a time came when I covered all the nuances of the law. I will give one example here that might be of use to the students. In my Delhi mains, a question was asked of which I didn’t know the answer and searched quite copiously on that after the exam. The same question came in Punjab mains and I was ready to answer it to the best of my knowledge. The key to removal of self doubt is to keep progressing and not looking back.

  • As after a lot of hard work, a candidate reaches the interview stage and is very anxious about how to clear it. What do you think is the best way to ace the interview?

Well, in my case I was super excited to give the interview and face the board. Due to my good scores at various mock interviews, I was least afraid about the interview nervousness or jitters. I took part in various extracurricular activities during my University days and I was quite sure that of all the stages, interview is going to be my strong point. Well, that being said, I was updated with the current knowledge and for Punjab and Haryana and I used to read newspaper regularly. In an interview before the Punjab and Haryana High Court board, I was asked about a case law which was published in a Tribune report just a few days back. The board gave a huge smile after I answered that question and I got the second highest marks from the board. My advice to candidates will be to prepare well for the interview and be original while answering the board.

  • If the interviewer becomes adamant at something or at any question, how should the candidate come out of that situation?

The thing that has to be kept in mind while entering the hall itself is that the interview is primarily a personality test. The Board knows that you have cracked the mains examination and you are well versed with law. Those 25-30 minutes are a test of your demeanor, posture, speaking skills and the ability to handle pressure. My advice for candidates who are going to face the judiciary board is that kindly be straight and accept your folly if you have made a mistake.

  • You have already achieved your primary target of becoming a judge, what is that drives you forward now? 

My first priority is to learn as much as I can from my seniors in the judiciary as they have years of experience and know the finesse required to be a judge. My second priority is to learn from the members of the bar as well. Most of the times, people outside the realm of judicial services have a feel that a judge overlords the justice delivery process. In my mind, I am certain that justice can only be done in the grey areas of law, once we hear the arguments of the lawyers carefully and apply cumulative knowledge on the facets of legal law or principle applicable in the particular case. Thirdly, in the procedural aspect of law, I wish to give fair amount of compensation to the litigants in my courtroom. Lastly, I wish to reduce the delay time in awarding justice. My biggest aim is to deliver justice to people who come in my courtroom and these priorities and more if any are my extra mile to achieve the same.

  • The team members of Judgesaab congratulate you again for your achievement and wish you all the best for your future endeavors. 

Thank you so much.