Jharkhand High Court
Kedar Nath Mahto vs The State Of Jharkhand Through The ... on 14 November, 2024
Author: Deepak Roshan
Bench: Deepak Roshan
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JHARKHAND AT RANCHI
W.P.(S) No. 1241 of 2021
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Kedar Nath Mahto, aged about 41 years son of Nehali Ram Mahato,
resident of 111A, Koyari Zara, Baraikala, PO-Chandipur, PS-Kasmar,
District-Bokaro ... Petitioner
Versus
1. The State of Jharkhand through the Secretary, School Education and
Literacy Department, Government of Jharkhand having its office at Project
Building, PO & PS-Dhurwa, District-Ranchi
2. The Director, Primary Education, School Education and Literacy
Department, Government of Jharkhand having its office at Project
Building, PO & PS-Dhurwa, District-Ranchi
3. The Deputy Commissioner-cum-Chairman, District Education
Establishment Committee, Koderma having its office at PO, PS & District-
Koderma
4. The District Superintendent of Education-cum-Sub-Divisional
Education Officer-cum-Secretary, District Education Establishment
Committee, Koderma having its office at PO, PS & District-Koderma
... ... Respondents
CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE DEEPAK ROSHAN
For the Petitioner : Mr. Rupesh Singh, Advocate
For the Respondents : Mr. Manish Kumar, Sr. SC-II
Mr. Niraj Kumar Mishra, AC to GP-VI
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JUDGMENT
CAV On 25/09/2024 Pronounced On 14/11/2024
The instant writ application has been preferred by the
petitioner praying for a direction upon the respondent authorities to
appoint the petitioner on the post of Inter Trained Teacher Class I to V in
the District of Koderma; wherein the petitioner successfully participated in
the process of appointment under non-para category and was called for
counselling on 03.06.2019 in which he submitted all his credentials but for
no rhyme and reason, the respondents have till date not issued the letter of
appointment to the petitioner and have also not indicated any reason for
the non-appointment of petitioner.
2. The brief facts of the case as per the pleadings are that
respondents had issued an advertisement in the year 2015 for appointment
of Inter Trained Teachers Class I to V in the District of Koderma, inviting
applications from eligible candidates to participate in the process of
selection. The petitioner who is duly qualified to participate in the process
of selection applied for the post of Inter Trained Teacher Class I to V under
non-para category in the District of Koderma under BC-II Category.
Petitioner is working as Para Teacher in New Primary School, Koarizara in
Kasmar Block of District Bokaro since 21.07.2003. The petitioner while
being employed as Para Teacher had also undergone the course of
Diploma in Primary Education under the Indira Gandhi National Open
University and successfully cleared the same in the year 2012. The
petitioner is having the educational qualification of Masters of Arts in
Economics from Nalanda Open University, Bachelor of Arts in Economics
from Vinobha Bhave University, Hazaribagh, Intermediate in Arts from
Bihar Intermediate Education Council in the year 1997 and has passed his
matriculation from Bihar School Examination Board, Patna in the year
1994 in second division, which are not under dispute.
The fact further reveals that the petitioner although being a
working Para Teacher, did not opt for participation in the process of
selection under para category; rather he chose to participate under open
category/non-para category of BC-II. As per the notification contained in
Memo No. 1632 dated 05.09.2012 (Recruitment Rules), the minimum
eligibility criteria for participating in the process of selection for the post
of Primary Teacher has been prescribed as minimum 50% marks in Higher
Secondary (Intermediate) with two years diploma in Primary Education or
45% marks in Higher Secondary (Intermediate) with two years of diploma
in Primary Education recognized by the National Council for Teacher
Education (NCTE) or minimum 50% marks in Higher Secondary
(Intermediate) along with four year degree course in Primary Education
(B.Ed.) or 50% marks in Higher Secondary with two years diploma in
teaching science or graduate with two years diploma in Primary Education
and pass marks in the Teacher Education Test (TET) for Class I to V
conducted by the Government of Jharkhand as per the NCTE Act.
3. It has been submitted by Mr. Rupesh Singh, learned counsel
for the petitioner that the Jharkhand Primary School Teachers Recruitment
Rules, 2012 (hereinafter to be referred as "Recruitment Rules") stood
amended from time to time but the minimum educational qualification
prescribed for appointment to the post of Inter Trained Teachers Class I to
V remained the same. It is stated that the subsequent amendments were
brought by way of notification contained in Memo No. 2102 dated
22.10.2014, Memo No. 1388 dated 22.06.2015 (Annexure-2 &3 to the writ
application). As per the petitioner, he fulfils the above eligibility criteria
which are not in dispute.
It has been further submitted that in the light of resolution as
contained in Memo No. 662 dated 02.05.2019, General Notice dated
02.05.2019 and notification contained in Memo no. 663 dated 02.05.2019
along with various clarificatory communications to conclude the process
of selection, the final counselling was conducted on 03.06.2019 by the
respondent-authorities. The petitioner appeared in the said counselling
process and submitted his relevant credentials as required by the
respondent-authorities in the course of counselling on 03.06.2019 with
proper receipt thereof (Annexure-4).
4. Learned counsel further contended that the petitioner who
also happens to be a physically disabled person submitted disability
certificate before the respondent-authorities to consider his candidature
under horizontal reservation meant for the physically disabled category.
After the process of counselling conducted on 03.06.2019, name of the
petitioner appeared as successful candidate in the merit list under Other
Backward Class II (OBC-II), in the provisional list prepared on
13.06.2019 wherein name of the petitioner appears at serial no. 22 under
OBC category. Further, the final merit list of the selected candidates for
the post of Inter Trained Teacher Class I to V in the District of Koderma
was published on 18.06.2019, in which name of the petitioner appears at
serial no. 2 under OBC category with benefit of horizontal reservation
meant for physically disabled persons (Annexure-5).
He lastly contended that the respondent no. 4 vide Letter No.
399 dated 06.07.2019 sought for option/choice by the petitioner for
selecting the concerned "Block" for the purpose of posting in appropriate
school to which the petitioner opted for (i) Chandwara, (ii) Koderma, (iii)
Jainagar, (iv) Domchanch, (v) Markachho and (vi) Satgawan Blocks in
preferential seriatim in Koderma Ddistrict (Annexure-6). However, the
respondents did not issue any offer of appointment to any selected
candidate in OBC category in spite of posts remaining vacant. Under the
aforesaid circumstances, the petitioner has made his representations before
the respondent-authorities on 23.11.2020 and 25.11.2020 but in vain
(Annexure-7 series).
5. Per contra, it has been contended by the learned counsel for
the respondents that the petitioner at the time of making the application did
not apply under the physically disabled category; however, he fulfils the
educational qualifications. In the instant writ application, a prayer has been
made to consider him in the physically handicapped category which is not
tenable. It has been further submitted that the marks of the last selected
candidate in the 8th counselling was 57.44 in BC-II; whereas the petitioner
scored 53.49 marks in his BC-II Category and in the light of District
Education Establishment Committee meeting dated 05.11.2020 and
07.11.2020, the case of the petitioner was rejected.
6. It has been strenuously contended by the Respondents that the
prayer of the petitioner for consideration under the vacancy of horizontal
quota of females cannot be considered as it can be for those male
candidates who have scored more or equivalent to 57.44 marks and so
far as the male candidates who have been appointed on seats for horizontal
quota of females have scored more than 53.49 marks.
7. Having heard learned counsel for the parties, it appears that
the candidature of the petitioner was rejected by the Sub Committee on
05.11.2020 and subsequently on the basis of the report of the Sub
Committee, by the District Education Establishment Committee Koderma
on 07.11.2020. A bare perusal of the documents pertaining to Minutes of
Meeting dated 07.11.2020 (Annexure-B to the counter affidavit) would
indicate that the case of the petitioner was rejected by the respondents but
from Annexures-A and B to the counter affidavit pertaining to Minutes of
Meeting dated 05.11.2020 & 07.11.2020, it is evident that copy of the
same was never communicated to the petitioner, nor any reason for not
appointing the petitioner was communicated.
Further, from the chart enclosed thereto forming part of
Annexure-B to the counter affidavit, it is also evident that in the 8th
counseling, 07 posts under female category candidates, 06 posts under
male category candidates in the social category of other backward class
were vacant in which one female candidate was selected who had secured
55.38 marks and 05 seats of the female category candidates were released
in favour of male candidates apart from the 06 posts available for the male
candidates.
8. It is thus evident that out of total 13 vacant posts for Other
Backward Class, 12 posts were filled by the respondents and one seat of
female candidate is still vacant. No female candidate was available against
the one vacancy available for the post of Inter Trained Teacher, Class-I to
V in the 9th counseling conducted by the respondents and even as on date,
the said one post under female category of Other Backward Class is still
vacant which is evident from the list of selected candidates prepared by the
respondents on 07.11.2020 by the office of District Superintendent Cum
District Education Officer, Koderma (Annexure-3 to rejoinder by the
petitioner). A perusal of the aforesaid list of the appointed candidates in
the year 2019 discloses that no female candidate was selected and
appointed on the sole vacancy for female candidates of Other Backward
Class, available after the 8th counseling conducted by the respondents
(Annexure-1 to rejoinder).
9. At this stage, it is pertinent to mention here that the
Department of School Education and Literacy, Government of Jharkhand
issued Letter No. 2537 dated 30.10.2015, wherein the Government has
directed that in the light of the judgment of Hon'ble Supreme Court in
Civil Appeal No. 74 of 2010, it has been held that the seats reserved for
the female candidates cannot be carried forward as the same is in relation
to horizontal reservation in which the rule of carrying forward does not
apply and therefore the same are to be released in favour of suitably male
candidates (Annexure-2 to rejoinder).
It further appears that by a Meeting of the District Education
Establishment Committee held on 18.06.2019 of the District Koderma
(Annexure-3 to rejoinder), the respondents identified the total number of
vacancies available for the 9th counseling, wherein it has been indicated
that under Non-Para Teacher Category in the Other Backward Class, one
post under the female horizontal reservation remained vacant. Even
otherwise, in the light of Annexures-1 & 2 to the rejoinder, the respondents
are duty bound to release one seat remaining vacant for female candidate
under horizontal reservation in BC-II and there is no female candidate who
had participated in the 9th counseling and therefore in the light of
Annexure-2 hereinabove, the said post has to be released by the
respondents in favour of the petitioner as he is above all other candidates
under the Other Backward Class in merit under the 9th counseling
conducted by the respondents.
The action of the respondents in not issuing letter of
appointment is not sustainable in view of the fact that it was the
respondents who accepted the disability certificate of the petitioner in
counselling on 03.06.2019 and if they are not considering the case of the
petitioner in physically handicapped quota, he cannot be ousted from
consideration from his social category of BC-II, inasmuch as, one seat of
horizontal reservation for females in BC-II category is still vacant, and as
stated hereinabove, the respondents under the relevant Recruitment Rules
are not having the authority to keep it vacant if eligible candidates in BC-
II category (Male) are available and that too without any justification.
10. Having regard to the aforesaid discussions, the respondents
are directed to consider the case of the petitioner in the single vacant seat
of female horizontal reservation in BC-II category and issue letter of
appointment to the petitioner if there is no other candidate higher in the
merit to the petitioner in BC-II category. It is made clear that the entire
exercise shall be completed by the respondents within a period of twelve
weeks from the date of receipt/production of copy of this order.
11. Consequently, the instant writ application stands allowed in
the manner indicated hereinabove.
(Deepak Roshan, J.)
Jharkhand High Court, Ranchi
Dated:14 /11 /2024
Amit
AFR/NAFR
