Kerala High Court
Resmi Devi R vs The State Of Kerala on 10 August, 2022
IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
PRESENT
THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE A.K.JAYASANKARAN NAMBIAR
&
THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE MOHAMMED NIAS C.P.
WEDNESDAY, THE 10TH DAY OF AUGUST 2022/19TH SRAVANA, 1944
OP(KAT) NO. 252 OF 2022
AGAINST THE ORDER IN OA 614/2022 OF KERALA ADMINISTRATIVE
TRIBUNAL, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM
PETITIONER/APPELLANT:
RESMI DEVI R
AGED 40 YEARS
D/O. R.SASIDHARAN,
NEDUMPARAMPIL VEEDU, POTHAPPALLY,
KUMARAPURAM.P.O., HARIPAD,
ALAPPUZHA DISTRICT, PIN - 690548
BY ADV A.ABDUL LATHEEF
RESPONDENTS:
1 THE STATE OF KERALA
REPRESENTED BY ITS PRINCIPAL SECRETARY
GENERAL EDUCATION DEPARTMENT,
GOVERNMENT SECRETARIAT,
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, KERALA, PIN - 695001
2 KERALA PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION
BY ITS SECRETARY,
PATTOM.P.O., THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, PIN - 690504
3 THE DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION
OFFICE OF THE DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION ,
ALAPPUZHA, PIN - 688001
4 THE DISTRICT OFFICER
KERALA PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION,
DISTRICT OFFICE, ALAPPUZHA, PIN - 688001
BY SRI.P.C.SASIDHARAN
BY SRI.B.UNNIKRISHNA KAIMAL, SR GP
THIS OP KERALA ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION
ON 03.08.2022, THE COURT ON 10.08.2022 DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING:
O.P.(KAT) No.252 of 2022
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A.K.JAYASANKARAN NAMBIAR, J.
&
MOHAMMED NIAS C.P., J.
-------------------------------
O.P.(KAT) No.252 of 2022
-----------------------------------
Dated this the 10th day of August, 2022
JUDGMENT
Mohammed Nias.C.P., J.
This original petition is filed by the applicant in OA No.614 of
2022 challenging the dismissal of her application filed, inter alia, to
declare that she is entitled to get appointment to the post of Lower
Primary School Assistant (LPSA) under the quota earmarked to the
dependants of the disabled defence personnel and also to direct the
respondents to revive the practice of publishing a separate special
list for the dependants of the defence personnel for appointment in
Government service.
2. The applicant, the unmarried daughter of an ex-
serviceman, had acquired the TTC qualification during the year 2000-
2002 at the quota earmarked for the depandants of the defence
personnel. She applied pursuant to the notification issued by the
Public Service Commission for appointment to the post of LPSA and
has been included in the supplementary list for Ezhava community
O.P.(KAT) No.252 of 2022
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with little chance for getting appointment. The applicant's case was
that her father while working in the CRPF as Radio Operator
sustained a fatal injury in a mine explosion following which he was
invalidated from service from 1981. Though her name has been
sponsored by the employment exchange and that she had
participated in the test conducted by the PSC, because of the
position of her rank , she will not be able to get employment on merit.
It is her case that PSC is not publishing a special list for the
candidates coming under the dependants of defence personnel. It is
her further contention that Government Order No.915/2022/G.EDN ,
Anenxure A3 dated 18.2.2022 as well as Government Order dated
26.9.1999 and the order dated 24.9.2002 will come to the aid of the
applicant in getting an employment going by the terms of the said
Orders. She had approached the Tribunal on an earlier occasion by
filing OA No.2328 of 2021 wherein there was a direction to consider
her representation, but the same was rejected by the Government,
that was challenged in the present O.A.
3. The Tribunal considered the matter and found that the
applicant was claiming the benefit of G.O.(P) 110/2002/GAD dated
29.4.2022, Annexure A4 which formulated a scheme for providing
employment assistance to the dependants of defence personnel and
GREF/BSF personnel attached to military duty,
O.P.(KAT) No.252 of 2022
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killed/disabled/missing due to reasons attributable to military service
at peace time and the said scheme provided for appointment of the
dependants to the post in the Lowest Grade of III / IV subordinate
service. The Tribunal found that the said scheme does not provide for
any employment when recruitment for the public appointments is
made by the PSC. It is also found that the beneficiaries of the Scheme
were those persons coming under the defence ministry whereas,
paramilitary force of CRPF was under the control of Home Ministry
and the appellant cannot be termed as one coming under 'defence
personnel'. It is also found that the clarification issued by the
Government in G.O.(P) 450/1999/GAD, also cannot be made
applicable to the applicant as the same envisaged only providing
financial benefits under a welfare fund created for the dependants
of the defence personnel. Since these schemes cannot have the effect
of creating reserved quota for public employment, wherein selection
and advise is made through PSC, the Tribunal found that the
applicant cannot get any benefit from the said scheme. The Tribunal
also found that the applicant cannot as a matter of right claim that
the State should provide specified quota reserved of public
employment to persons like her whose parents were disabled while
working in the para-military force of CRPF. The Tribunal felt that
such matters come within the realm of policy decisions of the
Government, upon which the courts cannot compel the Government
O.P.(KAT) No.252 of 2022
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to formulate any policy. On these grounds, the Tribunal dismissed
the application which is challenged in this original petition.
4. Before us, the learned counsel for the petitioner/
applicant reiterated the contentions taken before the Tribunal and
made a further submission that the Government Orders referred
above is to be followed by the PSC while making recruitment to the
posts mentioned in the Government Orders and should carve out
separate quota for them as otherwise the benefits conferred by the
said Government Orders will not be effectuated. It is his further
submission that the Government ought to give her employment as
mandated by the above Orders, even if the applicant is not
considered for recruitment by the PSC. We cannot agree to any of
the above submissions. We are in complete agreement with the view
of the Tribunal that the Government Orders referred above are not
applicable to the applicant's case in as much as it pertains only to the
defence personnel and it has nothing to do with the recruitment
conducted by the PSC. Still further, the applicant does not belong to
the category mentioned in the said orders as her father is stated to
have worked in the para military force of CRPF, which comes under
the Home ministry. Further prayer of the applicant that the
Government should be directed to give the benefits of the orders to
her also cannot be accepted as no right is provided under the said
O.P.(KAT) No.252 of 2022
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orders to order so. With respect to the prayer of the applicant that a
separate quota should be reserved for public employment to persons
like her, as rightly found by the Tribunal, it is a matter of policy which
cannot be dictated by the Courts. We find nothing wrong in the order
of the Tribunal dismissing the application preferred by the petitioner.
The Original Petition (KAT) lacks merits and the same is
dismissed.
Sd/-
A.K.JAYASANKARAN NAMBIAR
JUDGE
Sd/-
MOHAMMED NIAS C.P.
JUDGE
dlk/4.8.2022
O.P.(KAT) No.252 of 2022
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APPENDIX OF OP(KAT) 252/2022
PETITIONER's ANNEXURES
Annexure A1 TRUE COPY OF THE REPRESENTATION DATED
13.03.2021 SUBMITTED BY THE APPLICANT
BEFORE THE 1ST RESPONDENT
Annexure A2 TRUE COPY OF THE ORDER DATED 29.06.2021 IN
OA NO. 2328/2019 OF THIS HONOURABLE
TRIBUNAL
Annexure A3 TRUE COPY OF THE GOVERNMENT
ORDER(ORDINARY) NO. 915/2022/G.EDN DATED
18.02.2022 ISSUED BY THE GENERAL EDUCATION
( R) DEPARTMENT.
Annexure A4 TRUE COPY OF THE REPLY NO. R1/507/2021-
G.EDN. DATED 16.09.2021 RECEIVED BY THE
APPLICANT FROM THE GENERAL EDUCATION ( R)
DEPARTMENT
Exhibit P1 TRUE COPY OF THE O.A . NO. 614/2022 ON THE
FILE OF KERALA ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL,
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM
Exhibit P2 TRUE COPY OF THE ORDER DATED 27.04.2022 IN
O.A. NO. 614/2022
Exhibit P3 TRUE COPY OF THE G.O.(P) NO. 450/99 GAD,
ORDER OF THE GENERAL ADMINISTRATION
(SAINIK WELFARE) DEPARTMENT,
Exhibit P4 TRUE COPY OF G.O.(P) NO. 110/02/GAD ORDER
OF THE SAME GENERAL ADMINISTRATION (SAINIK
WELFARE) DEPARTMENT
Exhibit P5 TRUE COPY OF THE LETTER OF THE ADVOCATE
GENERAL DATED 12.07.2021
