Patna High Court
Rama Shankar vs The State Of Bihar on 4 April, 2025
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
Civil Writ Jurisdiction Case No.17205 of 2022
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Rama Shankar (UID No. RAM13101983LAW00440767), Male, Aged about
39 years, Son of Ramchandra Pandit, Resident of House No. 49, Road No.
39, Raghunath Tola, Anishabad, P.S.- Gardanibagh, District- Patna, Bihar.
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
1. The State of Bihar through the Additional Chief Secretary, Education
Department, Government of Bihar, Patna.
2. The Additional Chief Secretary, Education Department, Government of
Bihar, Patna.
3. The Bihar State Higher Education Council through the Chairman, Patna,
Bihar.
4. The Chairman, Bihar State Higher Education Council, Patna, Bihar.
5. The Bihar State University Service Commission through the Chairman,
Patna, Bihar.
6. The Chairman, Bihar State University Service Commission, Patna, Bihar.
7. The Patna University, Patna, through the Vice-Chancellor.
8. Quemre Alam, C/O - Azazul Haque, R/O Village-Sandali, P.O and P.S.-
Barauli, District-Gopalganj-841405.
... ... Respondent/s
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Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr. Mrigank Mauli, Sr. Advocate
Mr. Vikas Kumar Jha, Advocate
Mr. Prince Kumar Mishra, Advocate
For the Respondent/s : Mr. Prabhakar Jha (GP-27)
Mr. Umesh narayan Dubey, AC to GP-27
For the BSUSC : Mr. Pawan Kumar, Advocate
Ms. Diksha, Advocate
For the P.U. : Mr. Manish Dhari Singh, Advocate
For the Resp. No.8 : Mr. Abhinav Srivastava, Sr. Advocate
Mr. Pushkar Bhardwaj, Advocate
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CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE NANI TAGIA
ORAL JUDGMENT
Date : 04-04-2025
Heard learned counsel for the parties.
Patna High Court CWJC No.17205 of 2022 dt.04-04-2025
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2. The petitioner is aggrieved by the action of the
respondent authorities in appointing the petitioner as
Assistant Professor (Law) in Tilka Majhi Bhagalpur
University, Bhagalpur pursuant to a selection made by the
Bihar State University Service Commission (hereinafter
referred to as "the Commission") dated 30.09.2022
disregarding the preference given by the petitioner for
selection and appointment as Assistant Professor (Law) in
the Patna University, Patna.
3. The Commission had issued an advertisement
dated 21.09.2020 for appointment to the post of Assistant
Professors including the Assistant Professor for Law. The
total number of posts advertised for Assistant Professor
(Law) was 15, out of which, 5 posts were reserved for the
candidates belonging to Extremely Backward Class (EBC).
The petitioner belongs to EBC category.
4. As per Clause 9 of the Advertisement dated
21.09.2020
, which provided for allotment of University, the
Commission was to prepare a subject-wise common merit-
list as per vacancy and reservation roster. Out of this
common merit-list prepared, university wise merit-list was
Patna High Court CWJC No.17205 of 2022 dt.04-04-2025
again to be drawn by giving due consideration to the order
of preference given by the Candidates. It was further
provided in Clause 9.2 of the Advertisement dated
21.09.2020 that if a candidate of reserved category
candidate(s) becomes eligible for the merit list of
unreserved category, his appointment was to be made
against a vacancy of general category with due regard to the
order of his preference for the universities.
5. The petitioner had participated in the selection
process under the category of EBC candidate with
preference given in the following order:
(i) Patna University, Patna
(ii) Tilka Majhi Bhagalpur University, Bhagalpur
(iii) Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar Bihar
University, Muzaffarpur
6. After conclusion of the selection process, select
list dated 30.09.2022 was published by the Commission,
wherein, petitioner was placed at serial no. 4 in unreserved
category, though petitioner had participated in the category
of EBC candidates. Thereafter, the petitioner was allotted
Tilka Majhi Bhagalpur University, Bhagalpur for posting.
Patna High Court CWJC No.17205 of 2022 dt.04-04-2025
The five other candidates belonging to EBC category
candidates have also been selected vide the select list dated
30.09.2022 as per the number of posts advertised in the
advertisement for EBC category candidates and they have
also been allotted different universities having regard to
their preference.
7. The grievance of the petitioner is that though he
had given Patna University as his first preference and
placed higher in the merit-list than respondent no.8 namely,
Quemre Alam, but he has not been appointed in the Patna
University, Patna as per his preference, but the candidates,
who have been placed lower in the merit-list than him, have
been appointed in the Patna University in total disregard of
the petitioner's preference.
8. It has been stated that the three candidates have
been appointed in the Patna University as Assistant
Professor (Law), out of which, two belongs to the EBC
category candidates including respondent no.8 and the third
candidate belongs to the Scheduled Caste (SC) category
candidate.
9. The respondent-State, the respondent-
Patna High Court CWJC No.17205 of 2022 dt.04-04-2025
Commission, the respondent Patna University as well as
private respondent no.8 have filed counter affidavits,
wherein, they have taken a stand that the selection and
appointment of the petitioner has been done in accordance
with the terms and conditions stipulated in the
advertisement as well as the statutes for appointment of
Assistant Professor in the Universities of Bihar.
10. The respondents have relied on Clause 9 of the
Advertisement as well as Clause 4.1 of Chapter-4 of the
Statutes For the Appointment as Assistant Professor in the
Universities of Bihar-2020 (hereinafter referred to as the
"Statutes of 2020").
11. Petitioner has relied on Clause 5.5 of Chapter-
5 of the Statutes of 2020.
12. Clause 9 of the Advertisement; Chapter-4 and
Clauses 5.0 and 5.5 of Chapter-5 of the Statutes of 2020 as
relied on by the contesting parties are extracted hereinbelow
for ready reference:
"9. Allotment of University
9.1 The Commission will prepare a subject
wise common merit list as per vacancy and
reservation roster. Out of this common merit list,
Patna High Court CWJC No.17205 of 2022 dt.04-04-2025
university wise merit list will be drawn with due
consideration of the order of preference given by
the Candidates.
9.2 If a candidate of reserved category
becomes eligible for the merit list of unreserved
category, his appointment will be made in the
general category and such a candidate will be
allotted a post against a vacancy of general
category, with due consideration of the order of
his preference for universities.
9.3 The candidate should mark order of
preference for all the related universities.
..........................................................
Chapter-4
4.0. Reservation
4.1 The current Reservation Policy of the
State Govt. as applicable on the date of
advertisement will strictly be followed category-
wise and subject-wise as per the roster prepared
by the university administration/state govt. If a
candidate under reserved category qualifies in the
general merit list he/she will be selected under
general category.
Chapter-5
5.0 Selection Process
5.5 The Commission will prepare a composite
merit list of the subjects on the basis of vacancies
and reservation roster. Out of this composite
merit list a University wise panel, with due
consideration of preference of universities given
by the candidates, will be prepared for onward
transmission to the department/university."
Patna High Court CWJC No.17205 of 2022 dt.04-04-2025
13. On perusal of Clause 4.1 of Chapter-4 of the
Statutes of 2020, it is noticed that the current Reservation
Policy of the State Government as applicable on the date of
advertisement will strictly be followed category-wise and
subject-wise as per the roster prepared by the university
administration/state government. If a candidate from
reserved category qualifies in the general merit list he/she
will be selected under general category. Clause 5.5 of the
Chapter-5 of the Statutes of 2020 provides that the
Commission will prepare a composite merit list of the
subjects on the basis of vacancies and reservation roster.
Out of this composite merit list, a University wise panel
with due regard to the preference of universities given by
the candidates, will be prepared for onward transmission to
the department/university.
14. In consonance with the aforesaid provisions of
the statutes, in Clauses 9.1 and 9.2 of the Advertisement
dated 21.09.2020, it has been provided that the Commission
will prepare a subject-wise common merit-list as per
vacancies and reservation roster. Out of this common merit-
Patna High Court CWJC No.17205 of 2022 dt.04-04-2025
list, university wise merit-list will be drawn with due
consideration of the order of preference given by the
Candidates. If a candidate of reserved category becomes
eligible for the merit-list of unreserved category, his
appointment will be made in the General category and such
a candidate will be allotted a post against a vacancy of
General category, with due regard to of the order of his
preference for universities.
15. In the instant case, though the petitioner, who
is a candidate belonging to EBC category and had given
Patna University as first preference, was selected under
unreserved category as the petitioner had become eligible
for the merit-list of unreserved category because of his
performance in the selection process and accordingly the
petitioner's allotment of University was made under the
unreserved category, hence the petitioner was allotted Tilka
Majhi Bhagalpur University, Bhagalpur for appointment.
16. It appears that the petitioner could not be
allotted Patna Univesity, Patna for his appointment as it
appears from the select-list dated 30.09.2022 that altogether
three recommendations were made for appointment in the
Patna High Court CWJC No.17205 of 2022 dt.04-04-2025
Patna University in the select-list dated 30.09.2022 for the
candidates belonging to EBC category and Schedules Caste
category. Since the petitioner, though an EBC category
candidate was selected in the unreserved category because
of his performance in the selection process as per the
provisions contained in Clause 4.1 of Chapter-4 of the
Statutes of 2020 and Clause 9.2 of the Advertisement, the
petitioner appears to have been allotted Tilka Majhi
Bhagalpur University, Bhagalpur which is the second
preference given by the petitioner wherein the post of
Assistant Professor was meant for the unreserved category
because the three posts advertised for Patna University was
reserved for candidates of EBC & SC categories.
17. In view of the above, I find that the respondent
authorities have acted in accordance with Clause 9 of the
Advertisement dated 21.09.2020; Clause 4.1 of the Chapter
4 and Clause 5.5 of the Chapter 5 of the Statutes of 2020.
Hence, no interference is called for on the action of the
respondent authorities in the selection and appointment of
the petitioner as Assistant Professor (Law) and his allotment
of Tilka Majhi Bhagalpur University, Bhagalpur for his
Patna High Court CWJC No.17205 of 2022 dt.04-04-2025
posting as such.
18. Accordingly, the present writ petition stands
dismissed.
(Nani Tagia, J)
Nilmani/-
AFR/NAFR NAFR
CAV DATE N/A
Uploading Date 10.04.2025
Transmission Date N/A
