Amitabha Chanda vs State Of West Bengal & Ors
2023 Latest Caselaw 4800 Cal

Form No. J(2)

             IN THE HIGH COURT AT CALCUTTA
            CONSTITUTIONAL WRIT JURISDICTION
                     APPELLATE SIDE


Present:
The Hon'ble Justice Saugata Bhattacharyya

                         W.P.A. 6416 of 2015
                (IA NO: CAN 1/2016 (Old No: CAN 1471/2016)


                          Amitabha Chanda
                                   -vs-
                     State of West Bengal & Ors.



For the Petitioner                    : Mr. Sudeep Sanyal,
                                        Mr. Sukanta Das,
                                        Mr. Surodeep Sanyal


For the Balurghat Municipality        : Mr. Srijan Nayak,
                                        Ms. Riturparna Maitra


For the UGC                           : Mr. Anil Kumar Gupta



For the State                         : Mr. Biswabrata Basu Mallick,
                                        Mr. Sanjib Das



For the Respondent no.6               : Dr. Jyotirmoy Som

Hearing concluded on : 07.08.2023

Judgment on: 07.08.2023

Saugata Bhattacharyya, J.:

Petitioner being Lab Assistant was deputed to

Sanitary Section in Balurghat Municipality (hereinafter

referred to as "Municipality") for maintenance of day-to-day

conservancy works of the Municipality as per direction of

Conservancy-in-Charge and Sanitary Inspectors.

Petitioner is having Diploma Certificate in Health

and Sanitary Inspection issued by Vinayaka Missions

University, Salem, Tamilnadu. A notification was issued on

22nd February, 2014 by the Chariman, Balurghat

Municipality for filling up the post of Sanitary Inspector

and in pursuance of the said notice petitioner had offered

his candidature having the qualification of Diploma in

Heath and Sanitary Inspection.

It has been submitted by Mr. Sanyal, learned

advocate representing the petitioner that the petitioner was

the only candidate for the said post of Sanitary Inspector in

the said Municipality. The grievance which has been voiced

on behalf of the petitioner is issuance of memo dated 26th

February, 2015 by the Director of Local Bodies, West

Bengal whereby it was intimated to the Chairman of the

said Municipality that the selection of the petitioner for the

post of Sanitary Inspector is not permissible since Diploma

Certificate in Health and Sanitary Inspection of the

petitioner is not an approved qualification.

The said communication dated 26th February, 2015

has been questioned in the present writ petition and it has

been submitted on behalf of the petitioner that he obtained

Diploma Certificate from Vinayaka Missions University,

Salem, Tamilnadu in Health and Sanitary Inspection on

25th June, 2012 and the same ought to have been accepted

by the concerned respondent authorities in the matter of

his selection for the post of Sanitary Inspector in the

Municipality.

The writ petition is heard in presence of the learned

advocates representing the petitioner, Municipality, Indira

Gandhi National Open University, University Grants

Commission and the State respondents.

Having considered the submissions made on behalf

of the parties, it appears that petitioner obtained Diploma

in Health and Sanitary Inspection from Off-Campus Study

Centre situates at Dhanbad, Jharkhand. According to the

petitioner said Off-Campus Study Centre is under the aegis

of Vinayaka Missions University. It has also been

submitted that the petitioner had undergone the course in

academic session 2011-12. Therefore it has been

contended that there is no impediment in accepting the

Diploma Certificate of the petitioner in the matter of

selection for the post of Sanitary Inspector in the said

Municipality.

In support of such contention reliance has been

placed on a document dated 28th February, 2007 which is

at page 16 of the affidavit-in-opposition affirmed on behalf

of UGC and it has been strenuously argued that with effect

from 28th February, 2007 for a period of five years Faculty

of Distance Education of Vinayaka Missions University was

permitted to run such courses. Therefore it is presumed

according to the petitioner that the course which was

undergone for the Session 2011-2012 was approved by the

Distance Education Council (DEC).

In addition thereto reliance has been placed on

judgment of the Apex Court, reported in (2009) 4 SCC 590

(Annamalai University represented by Registrar -vs-

Secretary to Government, Information and Tourism

Department & Ors.).

On behalf of the said Municipality reliance has been

placed on the affidavit affirmed on behalf of the UGC in

order to satisfy the query of this Court that it is true for a

five years with effect from 28th February, 2007 institutional

recognition was granted by the DEC to Vinayaka Missions

University but Diploma in Heath and Sanitary Inspection

was not included in the approved programmes.

According to the Municipality as well as other

respondents as it has been submitted that Diploma

Certificate in Health and Sanitary Inspection is not an

approved qualification therefore the candidature of the

petitioner has rightly been cancelled by the Director of

Local Bodies vide communication dated 26th February,

2015.

This Court while considering the issue involved in

this writ petition needs to consider the affidavit-in-

opposition of the UGC wherein the status of Diploma

Certificate of the petitioner has been considered and the

contention of the petitioner relating to the status of such

Diploma Certificate has been negated in view of the

documents appended to the said affidavit-in-opposition.

It appears from page 18 onwards of the said

affidavit of UGC that one document dated 20th April, 2011

has been enclosed wherefrom it appears that an Expert

Committee comprising nominees of UGC, AICTE and DEC

visited Vinayaka Missions University and submitted its

recommendation. Such recommendation of the Expert

Committee was placed before the 38th Meeting of DEC and

the decision of the DEC taken in the said meeting was

communicated to the University thereby according

recognition for a period of three years with effect from

academic year 2011-12 to the academic year 2013-14 for

offering certain programmes through Distance Education

and the programmes have been delineated in a table

appended to the said document dated 20th April, 2011.

However, petitioner has failed to show that Diploma in

Health and Sanitary Inspection was included in the list as

contained in the said document dated 20th April, 2011.

In addition thereto it has been clarified in Clause

B9 of the said document dated 20th April, 2011 that

territorial jurisdiction for offering programmes though

distance mode by Vinakaya Missions University shall be

the head quarters of the University as per the notification

of the UGC as per DEC norms.

In addition thereto, this Court is required to rely

upon the judgment of the Apex Court, reported in (2005) 5

SCC 420 (Prof. Yashpal & Anr. -vs- State of

Chhattisgarh & Ors.) In paragraph 60 of the said

judgment it has been enunciated that in view of the Article

245(1) of the Constitution, Parliament alone is competent

to make laws for the whole or any part of the territory of

India and the legislature of a State may make laws for the

whole or any part of the State. The impugned Act which

specifically makes a provision enabling a university to have

an off-campus centre outside the State is clearly beyond

the legislative competence of the Chhattisgarh Legislature.

In the present case nothing has been produced

before this Court based on statutory provisions

promulgated by the Central Legislature empowering the

Vinayaka Missions University to run Off-Campus Study

Centre outside the territorial jurisdiction of the State of

Tamilnadu where the University situates. Though an

attempt has been made on the part of the petitioner to

justify running Off-Campus Study Centre outside the

territorial jurisdiction of the State upon placing reliance on

Annamalai University (supra) but this Court fails to find

out any observation made by the Apex Court which

empowers the Vinayaka Missions University to run Off-

Campus Study Centre outside the territorial jurisdiction of

the State of Tamilnadu.

In view of law laid down by the three-Judge- Bench

of the Apex Court in Prof. Yashpal (supra) and in

consideration of the document annexed to the affidavit-in-

opposition of the UGC dated 20th April, 2011, page 18

onwards, which contains list of courses which can be

offered through Distance mode of Education by Vinayaka

Missions University, the list is devoid of the course called

Diploma in Health and Sanitary Inspection, this Court does

not find any illegality in the communication dated 26th

February, 2015 issued by the Director of Local Bodies,

Government of West Bengal cancelling the candidature of

the petitioner on the ground that the Diploma Certificate of

the petitioner is not an approved qualification.

Accordingly this Court does not find any merit in

this writ petition and the same stands dismissed.

Application, if any pending, also stands dismissed.

However, there shall be no order as to costs.

Urgent photostat certified copy of this order, if applied

for, be given to the learned Advocates for the parties on the

usual undertakings.

(Saugata Bhattacharyya, J.)

36/Ct.15 rkd