Delhi High Court
Govt Of Nct Of Delhi And Anr vs Rima Jha on 21 March, 2025
Author: Navin Chawla
Bench: Navin Chawla
$~36
* IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI
Date of decision: 21.03.2025
+ W.P.(C) 3546/2025
GOVT OF NCT OF DELHI AND ANR .....Petitioners
Through: Mrs. Avnish Ahlawat, Standing
Counsel, GNCTD with Mr.
Nitesh Kumar Singh, Ms.
Laavanya Kaushik, Ms. Aliza
Alam, Mr. Mohnish Sehrawat,
Advs
versus
RIMA JHA .....Respondent
Through: Mr. Amit Kumar, Adv.
CORAM:
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE NAVIN CHAWLA
HON'BLE MS. JUSTICE RENU BHATNAGAR
NAVIN CHAWLA, J. (Oral)
CM APPL. 16582/2025 (Exemption)
1. Allowed, subject to all just exceptions.
W.P.(C) 3546/2025 & CM APPL. 16581/2025
2. This petition has been filed by the petitioners, challenging the
Order dated 19.11.2024 passed by the learned Central Administrative
Tribunal, Principal Bench, New Delhi (hereinafter referred to as,
'Tribunal') in Original Application No.1276/2024 (hereinafter referred
to as, 'OA') titled Rima Jha v. The GNCTD through its Chief
Secretary and Ors., allowing the said OA filed by the respondent
herein following the Order dated 19.07.2024 passed by this Court in
W.P.(C) 2814/2024 titled Govt. of NCT of Delhi & Anr. v. Rishikesh
Sharma along with connected matters.
3. A brief background of the facts giving rise to the present
petition is that the respondent, pursuant to an
Advertisement/Notification No. 02/21 dated 12.05.2021, issued by the
Delhi Subordinate Services Selection Board (hereinafter referred to as,
'DSSSB') for vacancies for TGT (Male) and (Female) for various
subjects and Assistant Teacher (Primary), had applied for the post of
Assistant Teacher (Primary) under the EWS category. The closing
date for the submission of the online application was 24.06.2021,
which was later extended till 04.07.2021. It is the case of the
respondent that she could not resolve the deficiency memo issued with
regard to her EWS certificate by the closing date due to the lockdown
declared by the Government owing to the spread of the COVID-19
pandemic. As her candidature was later rejected by the petitioners on
the ground that she could not submit her EWS certificate issued on or
before the extended date for making the applications, the respondent
filed the abovementioned OA before the learned Tribunal.
4. The learned Tribunal, by a common Judgment dated
08.08.2023, in OA 1524/2022 titled Anju and Ors. v. Govt. of NCT of
Delhi and Ors. and connected matters, allowed the said OAs filed by
similarly situated individuals as the respondent herein, directing as
under :-
"12. Conclusion:
12 .1 In conspectus of the facts of the case and
in view of the above discussion, we are
convinced that the applicants do possess valid
EWS Certificates issued to them by the
Competent Authority based on their financial
status, income and assets and met the
eligibility criterion. Therefore, we allow these
OA(s) in peculiar facts and circumstances as
narrated herein-above, the rejection notices of
the respective applicants for respective
categories are quashed and set aside. The
applicants in all these OA(s), who are having
EWS Certificates for last three financial
year(s) as on the cutoff date, the respondents
are directed to re-examine and reconsider the
cases of the applicants afresh. On
reexamination, if their candidature is found to
be in order in view of the observation supra,
the respondents shall process their cases, and
issue offer of appointment(s) in their
respective post code and respective category
as per their merit position, if otherwise
fulfilling other eligibility conditions as per
RR's. The applicants shall be entitled to all
consequential benefits which shall flow on a
notional basis only. The actual benefit shall
accrue from the date when the applicants
actually join the post.
12.2 The above exercise shall be completed by
the respondents within a period of twelve
weeks from date of receipt of a certified copy
of this order."
5. The above Judgment was challenged by the petitioners before
this Court in the form of W.P.(C) 2814/2024, titled Govt. of NCT of
Delhi and Anr. v. Rishikesh Sharma, and connected petitions. This
Court in its Order dated 22.05.2024, upon hearing the parties,
observed as under:-
"5. Having perused the impugned order as
also the aforesaid decisions relied upon by
both sides, we are of the view that, in the
peculiar facts of the present case, the learned
Tribunal was justified in directing the
petitioner to consider the candidature of
respondents on merits."
6. The said batch of petitions was later dismissed by this Court
vide its Order dated 19.07.2024, directing the petitioners to carry out
the directions of the learned Tribunal within a period of 6 weeks from
the date of the said Order.
7. We are informed that an Order in compliance with the
directions of this Court, has been issued by the DSSSB.
8. The learned counsel for petitioners reiterates that as the
respondent did not submit her EWS certificate along with her
application before the closing date, she was rightly not offered
appointment. She further submits that presently there are no vacancies
against which the respondent can be accommodated.
9. On the other hand, the learned counsel for the respondent, who
appears on advance notice, submits that this Court has already
dismissed the petitions raising similar pleas filed by the petitioners,
and the petitioners should not be allowed to reagitate the same plea in
this petition. He further submits that before the learned Tribunal, the
petitioners were directed to keep seats vacant for the respondent, if not
already filled. He submits that, therefore, the petitioners cannot make
the relief, which has been granted to the respondent, infructuous, by
now claiming that there is no vacancy against which the respondent
can be accommodated.
10. We have considered the submissions made by the learned
counsels for the parties.
11. As would be evident from the above, the issue raised by the
petitioners in the present petition already stands decided by this Court
vide its Order dated 22.05.2024 read with Order dated 19.07.2024
referred to hereinabove. Merely because of the change of the Bench of
this Court, this Court would not like to re-open the issues which have
already been settled and, in fact, as claimed by the learned counsel for
the respondent, partly implemented by issuance of necessary Orders
by the DSSSB.
12. As far as the lack of vacancies is concerned, the learned
Tribunal vide its Order dated 03.04.2024, passed in OA 1276/2024 has
directed the petitioners to keep a seat vacant for the respondent herein
in case she was to succeed in the OA filed by her. We are of the
opinion that once the respondent has succeeded in the OA filed by her,
she cannot be denied the relief; the Order of the learned Tribunal
needs to be implemented.
13. Moreover, there is also a considerable delay in filing of the
present petitions, as the Impugned Order is dated 19.11.2024,
however, the present petition has been filed by the petitioners on or
about 17.03.2025. The present petition is, therefore, liable to be
dismissed on this ground as well.
14. Therefore, we find no merit in the present petition. The same,
along with pending application is accordingly, dismissed.
15. The petitioners shall comply with the directions issued by the
learned Tribunal within a period of 6 weeks from today.
NAVIN CHAWLA, J
RENU BHATNAGAR, J
MARCH 21, 2025
Ab/kg/SJ
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