Patna High Court
Dr. Prerna Priya vs The State Of Bihar on 21 May, 2021
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
Civil Writ Jurisdiction Case No.8860 of 2020
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Dr. Prerna Priya Daughter of Sri Kishore Kumar Sinha Resident of Flat No.
306, Block- B, Shree Ganesh Apartment, Urja Nagar, P.O. Danapur Cant.,
District- Patna, PIN- 801503, presently residing at Jai Prakash Nagar,
Town/Village- Nagar Nigam Purnea, Anchal Purnea Purw, District- Purnea,
PIN- 854301.
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
1. The State of Bihar through the Chief Secretary, Government of Bihar, Patna.
2. The Principal Secretary, Education Department (Higher Education),
Government of Bihar, Patna.
3. The Special Secretary, Education Department (Higher Education),
Government of Bihar, Patna.
4. Bihar State University Service Commission through its Secretary, 8th Floor,
Bihar School Examination Board, Academic Building, Buddha Marg, Patna-
800001.
5. Secretary, Bihar State University Service Commission, 8th Floor, Bihar
School Examination Board, Academic Building, Buddha Marg, Patna-
800001.
6. Chairman, Bihar State University Service Commission, 8th Floor, Bihar
School Examination Board, Academic Building, Buddha Marg, Patna-
800001.
... ... Respondent/s
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Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr.Rajendra Narain, Sr. Adv.
For the Respondent Nos. 4-6 : Mr. Pawan Kumar Chaudhary, Adv.
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CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE MOHIT KUMAR SHAH
CAV JUDGMENT
Date : 21-05-2021
The present writ petition has been filed
seeking the following reliefs:-
"(i) Issuance of an appropriate writ
including a writ in the nature of writ of
certiorari quashing the impugned part of
the advertisement issued pursuant to the
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
notice dated 21.09.2020 (Annexure-6) of
the respondent Bihar State University
Service Commission (hereinafter referred
to in short as BSUSC) inviting online
applications in prescribed format only
given in the said advertisement on website
of the said Commission for regular
appointment on the vacant posts of
Assistant Professors in different
Universities of the State of Bihar and its
constituent colleges on the basis of
requisition received from the Education
Department, Government of Bihar, but
unfortunately and surprisingly enough in
the schedule annexed to the said
advertisement / notice" in the list of the
concerned (core) subjects of Zoology (at
serial no. 1) and Botany (at serial no. 16)"
in the column of its applied / relevant
subjects there in no mention of
"Bioinformatics" which is an allied subject
in the core subjects of Botany and Zoology
as duly accepted by the various
Universities and Public Service
Commissions and teaching institutions
within our country on the basis of
guidelines of University Grants
Commission (hereinafter referred to in
short as UGC) and so the matter relating
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
to appointments in "concerned (core)
subjects of Botany and Zoology" should
not be allowed unless and until the allied
subject of "Bioinformatics" is added in it.
(ii) Issuance of an appropriate writ
including a writ in the nature of writ of
mandamus directing / commanding the
respondents to forthwith issue a
corrigendum to the effect that the allied
subject of "Bioinformatics" had been
added / included in the field of " concerned
(core) subjects of Botany and Zoology" as
notified in the Commission notice dated
21.09.2020.
(iii) Issuance of an appropriate writ
including a writ in the nature of writ of
certiorari quashing the impugned part of
the corrigendum dated 17.11.2020
(Annexure-10) of the respondent BSUSC
stating in the remarks column that "Hons.
Degree in Botany /Zoology is essential."
The same is not at all required hence it be
kindly quashed."
2. The brief facts of the case are that the
petitioner possesses the degree of M.Sc in
Bioinformatics from the Banasthali University,
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
which she had obtained in the year 2010,
whereafter, she was granted the certificate with
regard to the same on 19.01.2011 by the said
University. The petitioner is stated to have also
passed the CSIR-UGC Test for Junior Research
Fellowship and eligibility for lectureship (NET),
which was held on 19.06.2011, whereafter she
was issued the required certificate on
16.11.2011. The petitioner is stated to have
attended various national / international
seminars and conferences on Bioinformatics and
its allied fields in between the year 2014-2017,
apart from her research papers having been
published in various leading journals. The
petitioner is stated to have also acquired the
Ph.D. Degree in the field of Biophysics, Molecular
Biology and Bioinformatics from the University of
Calcutta in the year 2019 and was granted the
requisite certificate on 28.01.2020 by the
University of Calcutta.
3. The Bihar State University Service
Commission issued an advertisement / notice
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
dated 21.09.2020 for making regular
appointments on the post of Assistant Professors
in different universities and constituent colleges
in various subjects including the subject "Botany"
and online applications, in the prescribed format,
were invited to be filed by 02.05.2020 (5:00 pm).
The essential educational qualifications have
been prescribed under Clause 4.1.A. of the
aforesaid notice dated 21.09.2020, which is
reproduced herein below:-
"4.1.A. (i) A Masters degree from any
Indian University with 55% marks or an
equivalent grade in a point scale,
wherever grading system is followed, in
concerned/relevant/allied subjects, or
equivalent degree from any accredited
foreign university. Relaxation of 5%
marks will be given to candidates of Bihar
State belonging to SC/ST/EBC-1 (non
creamy layer)/BC-II (non creamy layer)
categories, and Physically challenged
candidates from any part of the Country
at the Master's Degree level. But both
benefits will not be admissible to the
same candidate. A relaxation of 5% at
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
the Master's Degree level shall be
provided to the Ph.D. Degree holders who
have obtained their Master's Degree prior
to September 19, 1991.
(ii) Besides fulfilling the above
qualifications, the candidate must have
cleared the National Eligibility Test (NET)
conducted by the UGC or the CSIR, or a
similar test accredited by the UGC, like
SLET/SET or who are or have been
awarded a Ph.D. Degree in accordance
with UGC Regulations 2009 or 2016 and
their amendments from time to time, as
the case may be, shall be exempted from
NET/SLET/SET But regarding recognition
of SLET/SET the provision of UGC
Regulation 2018 shall be valid.
Provided further that the candidates
registered for Ph.D. programmes prior to
July 11, 2009 shall be governed by the
provisions of the then existing
Ordinance /By-laws/Regulations of the
institution awarding the degree and such
candidates shall be exempted from the
requirement of NET/SET/SLET for
appointment in universities /
colleges/institutions subject to fulfillment
of the following conditions:
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
(a) The Ph.D. Degree of the candidate
has been awarded in a regular mode;
(b) The Ph.D. Thesis has been
evaluated by at least two external
examiners;
(c) An open Ph.D. Viva Voce of the
candidate has been conducted;
(d) The Candidate has published two
research papers from his / her Ph.D.
work, out of which at least one is in a
referred journal;
(e) The candidate has presented at
least two papers based on his/her
Ph.D. work in conferences /Seminars
sponsored/funded/supported by the
UGC/ICSSR/CSIR or any similar agency.
4. The learned Senior Counsel for the petitioner
has also referred to the aforesaid essential
educational qualifications and has submitted that
a candidate is required to possess Masters Degree
from any Indian University in the concerned /
relevant / allied subjects and the allied subjects
have been defined under Clause 5.7 of the said
notice dated 21.09.2020, which refers to
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
Schedule-I. It is submitted that in Schedule-I, the
allied subjects of the subject Botany, have been
mentioned as follows:-
(1) Microbiology
(2) Biotechnology
(3) Biochemistry
(4) Bio Science
(5) Environmental Science
(6) Genetics
(7) Molecular Biology
5. The learned Senior Counsel for the petitioner
has submitted that realizing the fact that
Bioinformatics has not been mentioned as an
allied subject of the subject Botany and Zoology,
the petitioner had filed a representation before the
respondent authorities, bringing to their notice,
the aforesaid discrepancy inasmuch as
Bioinformatics has not been mentioned as an
allied subject of the subject Botany.
6. It appears that the respondent authorities
had realized their mistake, hence, the Secretary,
Bihar State University Service Commission, Patna,
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
came out with a corrigendum dated 17.11.2020,
with reference to the aforesaid advertisement/
notice in question, wherein Bioinformatics was
declared as an allied / relevant subject of the
subject Botany and Zoology, however with a
remark that as far as the subject Botany is
concerned, Hons. Degree in Botany is essential
and as far as the subject Zoology is concerned,
Hons. Degree in Zoology is essential.
7. The learned Senior Counsel for the petitioner
has referred to the University Grants Commission
Regulations on minimum qualifications for
appointment of teachers and other academic staff
in Universities and Colleges and other measures
for the maintenance of standards in higher
Education, 2018 (Annexure-14 to the rejoinder
affidavit filed by the petitioner), Regulation Nos.
3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4 and 4.1.I. whereof are
reproduced herein below:-
"3.1. The direct recruitment to the posts of
Assistant Professor, Associate Professor
and Professor in the Universities and
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
Colleges, and Senior Professor in the
Universities, shall be on the basis of merit
through an all-India advertisement,
followed by selection by a duly-constituted
Selection Committee as per the provisions
made under these Regulations. These
provisions shall be incorporated in the
Statutes/Ordinances of the university
concerned. The composition of such a
committee shall be as specified in these
Regulations.
3.2. The minimum qualifications required
for the post of Assistant Professor,
Associate Professor, Professor, Senior
Professor, Principal, Assistant Librarian,
Deputy Librarian, Librarian, Assistant
Director of Physical Education and Sports,
Deputy Director of Physical Education and
Sports and Director of Physical Education
and Sports, shall be as specified by the
UGC in these Regulations.
3.3.
I. The National Eligibility Test (NET) or an
accredited test (State Level Eligibility Test
SLET/SET) shall remain the minimum
eligibility for appointment of Assistant
Professor and equivalent positions
wherever provided in these Regulations.
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
Further, SLET/SET shall be valid as the
minimum eligibility for direct recruitment
to Universities/Colleges/Institutions in the
respective State only:
Provided that candidates who have
been awarded a Ph.D. Degree in
accordance with the University Grants
Commission (Minimum Standards and
Procedure for Award of M.Phil/ Ph.D.
Degree) Regulation, 2009, or the
University Grants Commission (Minimum
Standards and Procedure for Award of
M.Phil/Ph.D. Degree) Regulation, 2016, and
their subsequent amendments from time
to time, as the case may be, shall be
exempted from the requirement of the
minimum eligibility condition of NET/
SLET/SET for recruitment and appointment
of Assistant Professor or any equivalent
position in any University, College or
Institution.
Provided further that the award of degree
to candidates registered for the
M.Phil/Ph.D. Programme prior to July 11,
2009, shall be governed by the provisions
of the then existing Ordinances / Bye-
laws / Regulations of the Institutions
awarding the decree. All such Ph.D.
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
candidates shall be exempted from the
requirement of NET/SLET/SET for
recruitment and appointment of Assistant
Professor or equivalent positions in
Universities/ Colleges/Institutions subject
to the fulfillment of the following
conditions:
(a) The Ph.D. degree of the candidate has
been awarded in regular mode only;
(b) The Ph.D. thesis has been awarded by
at least two external examiners;
(c) An open Ph.D. viva voce of the
candidate has been conducted;
(d) The candidate has published two
research papers from his / her Ph.D. work
out of which at least one is in a refereed
journal;
(e) The candidate has presented at least
two papers, based on his/her Ph.D. work in
conferences / seminars/sponsored/
funded/supported by the UGC/ICSSR/CSIR
or any similar agency.
The fulfillment of these conditions is to
be certified by the Registrar or the Dean
(Academic Affairs) of the University
concerned.
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
II. The clearing of NET/SLET/SET shall not
be required for candidates in such
disciplines for which NET/SLET/SET has not
been conducted.
3.4. A minimum of 55% marks (or an
equivalent grade in a point-scale,
wherever the grading system is followed)
at the Master's level shall be the essential
qualification for direct recruitment of
teachers and other equivalent cadres at
any level.
4.1.
I. Assistant Professor:
Eligibility (A or B):
A.
i) A Master's degree with 55%
marks (or an equivalent grade in a point-
scale wherever the grading system is
followed) in a concerned/ relevant/ allied
subject from an Indian University, or an
equivalent degree from an accredited
foreign university.
ii) Besides fulfilling the above
qualifications, the candidate must have
cleared the National Eligibility Test (NET)
conducted by the UGC or the CSIR, or a
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
similar test accredited by the UGC, like
SLET/SET or who are or have been
awarded a Ph.D. Degree in accordance
with the University Grants Commission
(Minimum Standards and Procedure for
Award of M. Phil/Ph. D. Degree)
Regulations, 2009 or 2016 and their
amendments from time to time as the case
may be exempted from NET/ SLET/SET:
Provided, the candidates registered for the
Ph.D. programme prior to July 11, 2009,
shall be governed by the provisions of the
then existing Ordinances/Bye-laws/
Regulations of the Institution awarding the
degree and such Ph.D. candidates shall be
exempted from the requirement of
NET/SLET/SET for recruitment and
appointment of Assistant Professor or
equivalent positions in Universities/
Colleges/Institutions subject to the
fulfillment of the following conditions:-
(a) The Ph.D. degree of the candidate has
been awarded in a regular mode;
(b) The Ph.D. thesis has been evaluated
by at least two external examiners;
(c) An open Ph.D. viva voce of the
candidate has been conducted;
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
(d) The candidate has published two
research papers from his / her Ph.D. work,
out of which at least one is in a refereed
journal;
(e) The candidate has presented at least
two papers based on his/her Ph.D. work in
conferences / seminars/sponsored/funded/
supported by the UGC/ICSSR/CSIR or any
similar agency.
The fulfillment of these conditions is to be
certified by the Registrar or the Dean
(Academic Affairs) of the University
concerned.
Note: NET/SLET/SET shall also not be
required for such Masters Programmes in
disciplines for which NET/SLET/SET is not
conducted by the UGC, CSIR or similar test
accredited by the UGC, list SLET/SET.
OR
B. The Ph. D degree has been obtained
from a foreign university/institution with a
ranking among top 500 in the World
University Ranking (at any time) by any
one of the following:(i) Quacquarelli
Symonds (QS) (ii) the Times Higher
Education (THE) or (iii) the Academic
Ranking of World Universities (ARWU) of
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
the Shanghai Jiao Tong University
(Shanghai).
Note: The Academic score as specified in
Appendix II (Table 3A) for Universities, and
Appendix II (Table 3B) for Colleges, shall be
considered for short-listing of the
candidates for interview only, and the
selections shall be based only on the
performance in the interview."
8. The learned Senior Counsel for the petitioner
has thus submitted that neither the aforesaid
University Grants Commission Regulations, 2018
nor the statutes for appointment of Assistant
Professor for the Universities of Bihar-2020 nor the
aforesaid notice / advertisement dated 21.09.2020
stipulates any such requirement that a candidate
should possess Hons. Degree in any particular
subject, especially in the subject for which
application has been made for appointment as
Assistant Professor. In this regard, it would be
relevant to quote the "essential qualifications",
required for the purposes of being appointed on
the post of Assistant Professor, as mentioned
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
under Clause 3.3 of the Statutes for the
Appointment of Assistant in the Universities of
Bihar-2020, herein below:-
"3.3 Essential qualifications
3.3.1 A master degree with 55% marks
or an equivalent grade in a point scale,
wherever the grading system is followed,
in Concerned/Relevant/Allied subjects.
Relaxation of 5% marks for SC/ST/BC-I
(Non-creamy layer)/BC-II (Non-creamy
layer) Candidate of the State, while
physically challenged persons from any
part of the country will be given relaxation
of 5% marks at Master's Degree. But both
benefits shall not be admissible to the
same candidate.
A relaxation of 5% shall be provided,
(from 55% to 50% of the marks) to the
Ph.D. Degree holders who have obtained
their Master's Degree prior to 19
September 1991.
3.3.2 Besides fulfilling the above
qualifications, the candidate must have
cleared the National Eligibility Test (NET)
conducted by the UGC or the CSIR, or a
similar test accredited by the UGC, like
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
SLET/SET or who are or have been
awarded a Ph.D. Degree in accordance
with University Grants Commission
(Minimum Standards and Procedure for
Award of M. Phil/Ph.D. Degree)
Regulations, 2009 or 2016 and their
amendments from time to time as the case
may be exempted from NET/ SLET/SET:
Provided that regarding recognition of
SLET/SET the provisions of UGC Regulation
2018 shall be applicable.
Provided further that the candidates
registered for Ph.D. programme prior to
July 11, 2009 shall be governed by the
provisions of the then existing
Ordinances /By-laws/Regulations of the
Institution awarding the degree and such
Ph.D. candidates shall be exempted from
the requirement of NET/SLET/SET for
recruitment and appointment of Assistant
Professor or equivalent positions in
Universities/ Colleges/Institutions subject
to fulfillment of the following conditions:
(a) The Ph.D. Degree of the candidate has
been awarded in a regular mode;
(b) The Ph.D. Thesis has been evaluated
by at least two external examiners:
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
(c) An open Ph.D. Viva Voce of the
candidate has been conducted;
(d) The Candidate has published two
research papers from his / her Ph.D. work,
out of which at least one is in a referred
journal (UGC 'Care' /SCOPUS).
(e) The candidate has presented at least
two papers based on his/her Ph.D. work in
conferences /Seminars sponsored/funded/
supported by the UGC/ICSSR/CSIR or any
similar agency.
The fulfillment of these conditions is to be
certified by the registrar or the Dean
(Academic Affairs/Faculty) of the University
concerned."
9. It is further submitted by the Ld. Senior
Counsel for the petitioner that though the
respondent authorities have acted in a fair manner
by declaring Bioinformatics to be an allied subject
of the subject Botany and Zoology, however, the
respondent- Bihar State University Service
Commission, Patna, has faltered by prescribing an
additional qualification of possessing Hons. Degree
in Botany / Zoology, as the case may be, in case of
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
appointment as Assistant Professor in the subject
of Botany and Zoology, if the candidate possesses
Masters Degree in Bioinformatics, which is not only
against the University Grants Commission
regulations, 2018 but also against the provisions
contained in statutes for appointment of Assistant
Professor for the Universities of Bihar-2020 and
against the notice / advertisement dated
21.09.2020, as aforesaid, as also amounts to
changing the rules of the games midway, which, in
any view of the matter, is not permissible
inasmuch as in the original notice / advertisement
dated 21.09.2020 itself, there is no prescription to
the effect that a candidate is required to possess
additional educational qualification, thus the
insertion of additional qualification of possessing
Hons. Degree in Botany / Zoology, as the case may
be, by the respondent-Bihar State University
Service Commission is de hors the statutes for
appointment of Assistant Professor for the
Universities of Bihar-2020, University Grants
Commission Regulations, 2018 and the notice /
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
advertisement dated 21.09.2020, hence, the
corrigendum dated 17.11.2020 is required to be
quashed to the said extent.
10. Per contra, the learned counsel for the
Respondent-University has submitted, by referring
to Clause 3.8 of the aforesaid statutes for
appointment of Assistant Professor for the
Universities of Bihar-2020, that the eligibility of
candidates with degree in concerned / relevant /
allied subjects for any specific subjects is to be
decided only by the Commission on the
recommendation of a Committee consisting of two
or three subject experts. At this juncture, it would
be relevant to reproduce Clause 3.8 of the
aforesaid statutes for appointment of Assistant
Professor for the Universities of Bihar-2020, herein
below:-
"3.8. Eligibility of candidates with
degree in Concerned / Relevant/Allied
Subjects:- The eligibility of candidates
with degree in concerned / relevant/ allied
subjects for any specific subjects will be
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
decided by the commission on the
recommendation of a committee
consisting of two or three subject experts.
The equivalent of similar subjects with
different names in different universities
will be decided by committee consisting of
two or three subject experts."
11. The learned counsel for the Respondent-
Commission has further submitted that the Hon'ble
Madras High Court in a judgment dated 05.07.2018
passed in W.P. (MD) No. 3441 of 2018 (Dr. G.
Chandran vs. The Registrar, Tamil University
Thanjavur & Ors.) has been held in paragraph no.
28 as follows:-
"28. Whether a particular subject is relevant
or allied with the concerned subject, or not
is the matter of academic issue, which can
only be decided by academicians and not
by this Court. In this regard, the law is well
settled and a number of decisions have
been made in this regard, because, Court is
not expert in academic matters and in
cases of this nature, the Court cannot have
the expertise/knowledge to decide as to
whether the particular discipline or subject
is equivalent or allied or relevant subject to
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
a particular or concerned subject. The
following decisions of the Hon'ble Supreme
Court can be usefully referred to appreciate
the settled legal position."
It is thus submitted that whether a particular
subject is relevant or allied with the concerned
subject or not is required to be decided by the
Commission on the recommendation of a
Committee consisting of two or three subject
experts and not by the Courts and the Commission
has already taken a decision and issued a
corrigendum dated 17.11.2020, as aforesaid. It is
thus submitted that in such view of the matter, the
writ petition is fit to be dismissed.
12. I have heard the learned counsel for the
parties and perused the materials available on
record as also gone through the various statutes /
regulations / documents on record, apart from the
judgment referred to hereinabove by the learned
counsel for the Respondent-Commission in the
case of Dr. G. Chandran (supra).
13. This Court finds that the University Grants
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
Commission Regulations, 2018, as aforesaid, the
statutes for appointment of Assistant Professor for
the Universities of Bihar-2020 as also the aforesaid
notice / advertisement dated 21.09.2020
prescribes the essential educational qualifications,
which the applicants must hold for the purposes of
appointment on the post of Assistant Professor and
all the three documents admittedly prescribe that
the applicants / candidates must possess Masters
Degree from any Indian University with 55% marks
or an equivalent grade in a point scale, wherever
grading system is followed in the concerned /
relevant/ allied subjects. It is also clear that the
aforesaid University Grants Commission
regulations, 2018, the statutes for appointment of
Assistant Professor for the Universities of Bihar-
2020 as also the notice / advertisement dated
21.09.2020, do not stipulate that a candidate
should possess Hons. Degree in Botany / Zoology,
as the case may be, in cases where applications
have been made for appointment to the post of
Assistant Professor in the subject Botany and
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
Zoology and such candidates are possessing
Masters Degree in the allied subject i.e.
Bioinformatics. Therefore, the corrigendum dated
17.11.2020, prescribing therein that Hons. Degree
in Botany / Zoology is essential, as aforesaid, is
clearly in teeth of the University Grants
Commission Regulations, 2018, statutes for
appointment of Assistant Professor for the
Universities of Bihar-2020 and the aforesaid
notice/advertisement dated 21.09.2020, hence is
illegal, thus is quashed to the said extent and it is
held that possessing of Hons. Degree in Botany /
Zoology, as the case may be, in case of candidates
applying for appointment on the post of Assistant
Professor in the subject Botany / Zoology and
possessing Masters Degree in the allied subject i.e.
Bioinformatics, is not an essential educational
qualification required by such candidates.
14. This Court would fail in its duty if it does not
advert to the general proposition of law pointed
out by the learned counsel for the respondent-
Commission to the effect that the issue as to
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
whether a particular subject is relevant or allied
with the concerned subject or not cannot be
decided by the learned Courts. In this regard, it is
stated that the proposition of law, being referred to
by the learned counsel appearing for the
Respondent-Commission, is well-settled and there
is no quarrel with regard to the said principle of
law. In the present case also, the Commission,
probably on the recommendation of the Committee
of experts, has decided, vide the corrigendum
dated 17.11.2020, that Bioinformatics is an allied
subject of the subject Botany and Zoology, hence,
this Court finds that the issue as to whether a
subject is allied or not does not arise for
consideration in the present proceedings, thus, the
argument advanced by the learned counsel for the
Respondent-Commission is irrelevant as far as the
present case is concerned.
15. Another aspect of the matter is that the rules
of the games cannot be changed midway i.e. the
criteria mentioned in the advertisement issued
with regard to certain recruitment process cannot
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
be changed once the selection process has
commenced. Reference in this regard be had to a
judgment rendered by the Hon'ble Apex Court in
the case of Hemani Malhotra vs. High Court of
Delhi, reported in (2008) 7 SCC 11, paragraphs
no. 14 and 15 whereof are reproduced herein
below:-
14. It is an admitted position that at the
beginning of the selection process, no
minimum cut-off marks for viva voce
were prescribed for Delhi Higher Judicial
Service Examination, 2006. The question,
therefore, which arises for consideration
of the Court is whether introduction of the
requirement of minimum marks for
interview, after the entire selection
process was completed would amount to
changing the rules of the game after the
game was played. This Court notices that
in K. Manjusree v. State of A.P. [(2008) 3
SCC 512 : (2008) 1 SCC (L&S) 841] the
question posed for consideration of this
Court in the instant petitions was
considered and answered in the following
terms:
"33. The Resolution dated 30-11-2004
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
merely adopted the procedure
prescribed earlier. The previous
procedure was not to have any
minimum marks for interview.
Therefore, extending the minimum
marks prescribed for written
examination, to interviews, in the
selection process is impermissible. We
may clarify that prescription of
minimum marks for any interview is
not illegal. We have no doubt that the
authority making rules regulating the
selection, can prescribe by rules, the
minimum marks both for written
examination and interviews, or
prescribe minimum marks for written
examination but not for interview, or
may not prescribe any minimum
marks for either written examination
or interview. Where the rules do not
prescribe any procedure, the Selection
Committee may also prescribe the
minimum marks, as stated above. But
if the Selection Committee wants to
prescribe minimum marks for
interview, it should do so before the
commencement of selection process. If
the Selection Committee prescribed
minimum marks only for the written
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
examination, before the
commencement of selection process, it
cannot either during the selection
process or after the selection process,
add an additional requirement that the
candidates should also secure
minimum marks in the interview. What
we have found to be illegal, is
changing the criteria after completion
of the selection process, when the
entire selection proceeded on the
basis that there will be no minimum
marks for the interview."
From the proposition of law laid down by
this Court in the above mentioned case it
is evident that previous procedure was
not to have any minimum marks for viva
voce. Therefore, prescribing minimum
marks for viva voce was not permissible
at all after the written test was
conducted.
15. There is no manner of doubt that the
authority making rules regulating the
selection can prescribe by rules the
minimum marks both for written
examination and viva voce, but if
minimum marks are not prescribed for
viva voce before the commencement of
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
selection process, the authority
concerned, cannot either during the
selection process or after the selection
process add an additional requirement/
qualification that the candidate should
also secure minimum marks in the
interview. Therefore, this Court is of the
opinion that prescription of minimum
marks by the respondent at viva voce test
was illegal.
16. This aspect of the matter has also been
considered by the Hon'ble Apex Court in the case
of P. K. Ramachandra Iyer v. Union of India,
reported in 1984 (2) SCC 141, Umesh Chandra
Shukla v. Union of India, reported in 1985 (3) SCC
721, Durgacharan Misra v. State of Orissa, reported
in 1987 (4) SCC 646 and Maharashtra State Road
Transport Corporation v. Rajendra Bhimrao
Mandve, reported in 2001 (10) SCC 51.
17. Consequently, this Court finds that the
respondent- Bihar State University Service
Commission, Patna, by a corrigendum dated
17.11.2020 has changed the rules of the game
midway, by prescribing an additional qualification
of possessing Hons. Degree in Botany / Zoology, as
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
the case may be, in case of appointment as
Assistant Professor in the subject of Botany and
Zoology, if the candidate possesses Masters
Degree in Bioinformatics, which in any view of the
matter has also been found by this Court to be not
only against the University Grants Commission
regulations, 2018 but also against the provisions
contained in statutes for appointment of Assistant
Professor for the Universities of Bihar-2020 and
against the notice / advertisement dated
21.09.2020, especially in view of the fact that the
said three documents nowhere prescribes that a
candidate is required to possess the aforesaid
additional educational qualification, hence, the
corrigendum dated 17.11.2020 is required to be
quashed on this ground as well.
18. Considering the facts and circumstances of the
present case and for the reasons mentioned
hereinabove in the preceding paragraphs, the
present writ petition is allowed and the
Respondent-Commission is directed to consider the
case of the petitioner for appointment on the post
Patna High Court CWJC No.8860 of 2020 dt.21-05-2021
of Assistant Professor in the subject Botany /
Zoology, after granting an opportunity to the
petitioner to submit online application, in
accordance with the observations made by this
Court in the preceding paragraphs.
(Mohit Kumar Shah, J)
Ajay/-
AFR/NAFR AFR
CAV DATE 09.03.2021
Uploading Date 24.05.2021
Transmission Date NA
