Smti Junaki Nath and 4 Ors. Vs the State of Assam and 5 Ors. — Gauhati HC (2025) — LawSathi Research

Smti Junaki Nath and 4 Ors. Vs the State of Assam and 5 Ors. — Gauhati HC (2025) — LawSathi Research

What the court decided

AI extract

Outcome

Petitioners permitted to appear before the interview and selection process under the fresh advertisement dated 27.05.2025; writ petition disposed of accordingly; interim order, if any, merged; copy of the communication dated 20.05.2025 and the advertisement kept as part of the case record.

Issue for consideration

Whether the Court should direct the respondents to conduct the interview/selection process for the posts of Anganwadi Worker and Helper and publish the select list in favour of the petitioners and similarly situated candidates who had applied under the advertisement dated 13.12.2022.

Court's answer

Since a fresh advertisement dated 27.05.2025 has been issued under which the candidatures of candidates (including the petitioners) who had applied under the earlier advertisement dated 13.12.2022 will also be accepted for the selection process, no further cause remains alive in the present writ petition.

Ratio / Principle

The petitioners, in terms of the advertisement dated 27.05.2025, will be permitted to appear before the interview and selection process proposed to be conducted.

Key takeaways

The writ petition accordingly stands disposed of in terms of the above.ratio¶29
Any interim order stands merged.ratio¶30
A copy of the communication dated 20.05.2025 along with the advertisement placed before the Court by the respondents' counsel is kept as part of the case record.obiter¶31

Detailed headnote1 paragraphs

Gauhati High Court, WP(C)/1152/2024, order dated 02.06.2025 (Justice Soumitra Saikia): Five women applicants for the posts of Anganwadi Worker and Helper under advertisement No.C.D.P.O(L)/A/11/2022-23/31 dated 13.12.2022 (Hojai district) filed a writ petition praying for directions to the respondents to conduct the interview within a specified timeframe and publish the select list, as no selection process had taken place despite their applications. During hearing, the State produced a communication dated 20.05.2025 of the Additional Director, Directorate of Women & Child Development, Assam, showing that a fresh advertisement dated 27.05.2025 had been issued expressly accepting the candidatures of candidates who had applied under the earlier advertisement. Holding that no further cause remained alive in the writ petition, the Court permitted the petitioners to appear before the interview and selection process under the advertisement dated 27.05.2025 and disposed of the writ petition; interim order, if any, stood merged; the communication and advertisement were kept on the case record.

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GAHC010033712024

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THE GAUHATI HIGH COURT (HIGH COURT OF ASSAM, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH)

Case No. : WP(C)/1152/2024

SMTI JUNAKI NATH AND 4 ORS W/O BIPLAB NATH, R/O LANKA EJARBARI, P.O.-LANKA, DIST-HOJAI, ASSAM

2: SMTI. RUMPI CHAKRABORTY W/O RAJKAMAL CHAKRABORTY R/O BURAGAON P.O. AND P.S.-LANKA DIST- HOJAI ASSAM PIN-782442

3: SMTI. MONTI MAJUMDER W/O SRI BISWAJIT MAJUMDER R/O TERELUNJCHU WARD NO. 9 HOJAI ASSAM PIN-782447

4: SMTI. SAMPA SAHA ROY D/O DINESH SAHA R/O WARD NO. 5 LANKA DIST-HOJAI ASSAM PIN-782447

5: SMTI. PAYAL DAS D/O MADMAB DAS R/O JARANGDISHA WARD NO. 10 P.O. AND P.S.-LUMDING DIST- HOJAI ASSA

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VERSUS

THE STATE OF ASSAM AND 5 ORS REPRESENTED BY ITS SECRETARY TO THE GOVERNMENT OF ASSAM, DEPARTMENT OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT, DISPUR, GUWAHATI-6 2:DIRECTOR OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT UZAN BAZAR GUWAHATI-1 ASSAM 3:DEPUTY COMMISSIONER HOJAI ASSAM 4:ADDITION DEPUTY COMMISSIONER (WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT) HOJAI ASSAM 5:DISTRICT SOCIAL WELFARE OFFICE HOJAI ASSAM 6:CHILD DEVELOPMENT PROJECT OFFICE LANKA ICDS PROJECT HOJA

Advocate for the Petitioner : MR. S K GHOSH, MS F AHMED

Advocate for the Respondent : GA, ASSAM,

BEFORE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SOUMITRA SAIKIA

ORDER

02.06.2025

Heard Mr. S.K. Ghosh, learned counsel for the petitioners. Also heard Ms.

M. Bhattacharjee, learned Addl. Senior Government Advocate, Assam.

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The petitioners are before this Court for being aggrieved that the advertisement in which they had applied for, whereby the selection and appointment process to the post of Anganwadi Worker and Helper in various Anganwadi Centres was called for.

The petitioners being satisfied all the criteria applied for the said post. However, no selection process took place. Being aggrieved the present writ petition has been filed praying for appropriate directions from the Court to the respondents to conduct the interview within a specified timeframe and published the select list.

The respondents were permitted time to complete their instructions.

Ms. M. Bhattacharjee, learned Addl. Senior Government Advocate has placed before the Court a communication dated 20.05.2025 issued by the Additiional Director, Directorate of Women & Child Development, Assam, Guwahati-1. In terms of the said instructions received, it is submitted that a fresh advertisement has been issued on 27.05.2025 calling for candidates to apply for the said post. In the said advertisement it is specifically provided that the candidates who had applied for the post in terms of the earlier advertisement vide No.C.D.P.O(L)/A/11/2022-23/31 dated 13.12.2022 their candidatures will also be accepted for appearing in the selection process in terms of the present advertisement dated 27.05.2025. In other words the petitioners and other similarly situated candidates shall also be permitted to appear in the said advertisement.

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In that view of the matter no further cause is seen to be alive in the present writ petition.

The petitioners in terms of the advertisement dated 27.05.2025 will be permitted to appear before the interview and selection process proposed to be conducted.

This writ petition accordingly stands disposed of, in terms of the above.

Interim order, if any stands merged.

A copy of the communication dated 20.05.2025 along with the advertisement placed before the Court by Ms. M. Bhattacharjee is kept as a part of the case record.

JUDGE

Comparing Assistant