The Karnataka High Court has instructed the state government to appoint three candidates as work inspectors, despite the abolition of the post in 2021. The Division Bench, consisting of Justices D.K. Singh and S. Rachaiah, ruled in favor of Harish Kumar H.P., Vishwanath, and Hampanna Kolakar, who had successfully cleared the competitive examination conducted by the Karnataka Public Service Commission in 2016. Their names were included in the final select list published on September 16, 2017, after scoring more than 25% in the exam. The government had previously assured the court that it would issue appointment letters to candidates meeting this criterion. However, the appointment process was withheld following a proposal to abolish various posts, including 380 work inspector positions in the Department of Municipal Administration (DMA). The court noted that while inclusion in the select list does not guarantee appointment, the candidates have a legitimate expectation based on prior government conduct. The Bench stated that the statutory rules governing the cadre of work inspectors cannot be overridden by an executive order and directed the government to issue appointment orders within two months, with a provision for merging the posts into an equivalent cadre if the rules are amended.