State Of Gujarat vs Nileshkumar Ambabhai Patel
2021 Latest Caselaw 18613 Guj

      C/LPA/319/2021                                  ORDER DATED: 21/12/2021




            IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD

               R/LETTERS PATENT APPEAL NO. 319 of 2021
           In R/SPECIAL CIVIL APPLICATION NO. 14599 of 2020
                                 With
              CIVIL APPLICATION (FOR STAY) NO. 1 of 2021
              In R/LETTERS PATENT APPEAL NO. 319 of 2021
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                             STATE OF GUJARAT
                                   Versus
                        NILESHKUMAR AMBABHAI PATEL
================================================================
Appearance:
MR URMILA DESAI AGP for the Appellant(s) No. 1,2,3
MR SUDHANSHU A JHA(8345) for the Respondent(s) No. 1
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 CORAM:HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE S.H.VORA
       and
       HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE ANIRUDDHA P. MAYEE

                              Date : 21/12/2021

                                  ORAL ORDER

(PER : HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE ANIRUDDHA P. MAYEE)

1. The present Letters Patent Appeal takes exception to order dated 18.12.2020 passed in Special Civil Application No. 14599 of 2020.

2. The brief facts leading to filing of the present appeal are as follows :-

2.1 In November 2019, an advertisement for the recruitment of Shikshan Sahayak in Secondary and Higher Secondary Government School was published. Pursuant to the said advertisement, the respondent made an application. His form was selected and accepted and the name of the respondent was published in the provisional merit-list at serial No.121. The cutoff marks for selection in the subject of English - Shikshan Sahayak in the EWS category was 62.96 whereas the respondent had secured

C/LPA/319/2021 ORDER DATED: 21/12/2021

64.43. Despite this position, the name of the respondent was rejected on the sole ground that he had graduated with Bachelor in Rural Studies (BRS) Degree. Thereafter, in the second provisional list, the name of the respondent was shown at serial No.13 in the list of rejected candidates.

2.2 Aggrieved, the respondent preferred Special Civil Application No.14599 of 2020 praying for the following reliefs :-

"A. This Hon'ble Court be pleased to issue a writ of mandamus or any other writ, order or direction in form of writ of mandamus directing and/or commanding the respondents to consider the application of the petitioner in the Selection list for the post of 'Shikshan Sahayak' in the subject of English pursuant to the recruitment dated 15.11.2019 (at annexure A) and give appointment to the petitioner in any Government schools as per his merit;

B. This Hon'ble Court be pleased to hold and declare that the policy of the respondents in not considering the Bachelor of Rural Studies Degree as equivalent to the Bachelor of Arts as unjust, arbitrary as well as illegal.

C. This Hon'ble Court be pleased to stay the second merit list wherein other candidates than the petitioner are likely to be considered by ignoring the rights and merit of the petitioner;

D. Prayer for interim relief :

This Hon'ble Court be pleased to grant interim relief by directing the respondents to consider and include the name of the petitioner in the selection list as per the merit of the petitioner pending admission, hearing and final disposal of this petition;

E. This Hon'ble Court be pleased to pass such other and further relief as may be deemed just and proper in the facts and circumstances of the case."

2.3 The said Special Civil Application came to be decided and allowed by the learned Single Judge by the impugned order. Aggrieved by the impugned order, the present Letters Patent

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Appeal is filed by the appellants.

3. Heard learned advocates for the respective parties.

4. Learned Assistant Government Pleader Ms. Urmila Desai appearing for the appellants submitted that the advertisement prescribed for a degree in Bachelor of Arts in English subject and as the respondent did not have the same, his candidature was liable to be rejected based on notification dated 15.11.2019 which is not challenged in the Special Civil Application preferred by the respondent. It was submitted that notification dated 15.11.2019 was in fact introduced with a view to see that the uniformity is maintained in terms of equivalence of the degree. It was pointed out that as per Appendix - I to notification dated 15.11.2019, the qualifications were prescribed. It was further submitted that the learned Single Judge did not appreciate that even though the respondent had a master degree in English, he was not still holding the requisite Bachelors Degree for the subject as was required and therefore, no marks were allotted to the respondent in respect of his graduate degree.

5. Per contra, learned advocate Mr.Sudhanshu Jha appearing for the respondent has supported the impugned judgment and order. He submitted that the impugned order is well reasoned and takes into consideration the factual as well as legal position on record and hence, the same may not be interfered with.

6. This Court has considered the submissions advanced by learned AGP as well as perused the documents on record.

7. It is seen that the respondent possesses the qualification of B.R.S. (English), M.A. (English) and B.Ed., which is not disputed. A perusal of notification dated 15.11.2019 and

C/LPA/319/2021 ORDER DATED: 21/12/2021

Appendix - I thereto for Government Secondary Teacher (Class-III) shows minimum educational qualification for English subject as B.A.(English)/B.R.S. (English), whereas the notification for Government Higher Secondary Teacher shows minimum educational qualification as B.A. (English) only. Thus, while the notification for Government Secondary Teacher treats B. A. (English) and B.R.S. (English) as equivalent, the notification with respect to Government Higher Secondary Teacher is silent on the qualification of B.R.S. (English) as a minimum qualification. Thus, while the State Government holds B.R.S. and B.A. equivalent in one notification, it is silent in other notifications. In this view of the case, the contention of learned AGP that B.A. and B.R.S. are not equivalent degree cannot be accepted.

8. Further, it is also observed that the respondent holds a degree of Master in Arts in the subject of English which is definitely higher qualification than minimum prescribed qualification of B.A. (English). Thus, the contradictory stand of the appellant State that the respondent is not eligible since he does not hold B.A.(English) Degree cannot be accepted. Further, the judgment of this Court in Special Civil Application No. 1861 of 2017 dated 02.02.2017 in case of Kantaben Zaverbhai Desai vs. State of Gujarat is also applicable in the facts and circumstances of the present case.

9. In the complete conspectus of the present matter, we are of the opinion that the impugned order is based on sound reasons and the observations recorded by the learned Single Judge are correct and need no interference.

C/LPA/319/2021 ORDER DATED: 21/12/2021

10. In view of aforesaid reasons, the Letters Patent Appeal is dismissed with no order as to cost. Consequently, connected Civil Application for stay does not survive and it also stands disposed of.

(S.H.VORA, J)

(ANIRUDDHA P. MAYEE, J.)

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