Allowed

Dharmveer Singh v. State of Raj and Ors.

Rajasthan HC8 May 2018CW/9886/2018

Case brief

AI extract

What is this about?

The High Court allowed the writ petition, holding that since appointment was secured based on merit, the petitioner is entitled to pay fixation and seniority on a notional basis from the date juniors in the same recruitment process were appointed, correcting the respondents' refusal to grant such benefits.

What did the court decide?

Directed respondents to treat the petitioner senior to respondents No. 4 to 8 and extend benefits of pay fixation and seniority on a notional basis from the date junior candidates were appointed.

Dharmveer Singh Vs State of Raj and Ors. — Pension and Retirement Benefits | Rajasthan HC (2018)

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HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE FOR RAJASTHAN BENCH AT JAIPUR

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S.B. Civil Writs No. 9886/2018

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Dharmveer Singh Son Of Babulal Aheer, Aged About 42 Years, Resident Of Budwal, Tehsil Behror, District Alwar (Raj.)

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----Petitioner

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Versus

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The State Of Rajasthan Through Principal Secretary, Education Department, Govt. Secretariat, Jaipur (Raj.)

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The Director, Elementary Education, Education Department, Bikaner (Raj.)

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The Chief Executive Officer, Zila Parishad, Rajasmand (Raj.)

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The District Education Officer, Rajasmand (Raj.)

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The Development Officer, Panchayat Samitii, Devgarh, Dist. Rajasmand (Raj.)

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----Respondents

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For Petitioner(s) : Mr. Omveer Singh Saini For Respondent(s) :

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HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE VEERENDR SINGH SIRADHANA

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Order

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09/05/2018

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The controversy raised in the instant writ application is no more res-integra in view of the adjudication made in the case of Suman Bai & Anr. Vs. State of Rajasthan & Ors.: 2009 (1) WLC (Raj.) 381, wherein the Coordinate Bench of this Court observed thus:

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“5. Upon consideration of the arguments aforesaid and the judgment of the Division Bench in Hari Ram and the subsequent order dated 21.7.2001 whereby clarification application of the State Government was dismissed, I find that the entitlement of the petitioner for appointment on the basis of originally prepared merit list cannot be denied. If admittedly the candidates, who are lower in

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(2 of 3)

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[CW-9886/2018]

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merit, have been granted appointment, those who are above them in the merit cannot be denied such right of appointment. Seniority as per the rules in the case of direct recruitment on the post in question is required to be assigned on the basis of placement of candidates in the select list and when the selection is common and the merit list on the basis of which appointments were made is also common, right to secure appointment to both the set of employees thus flows from their selection which in turn is based on merit. Regard being had to all these facts, merely because one batch of employee approached this Court later and another earlier, and both of them having been appointed, the candidates who appeared 6 lower in merit cannot certainly be placed at a higher place in seniority. It was on this legal analogy that Division Bench of this Court in Niyaz Mohd.Khan (supra) held that the petitioner therein entitled to be placed in seniority in order of merit of common selection amongst persons appointed in pursuance of the same selection with effect from the date person lower in order of merit than the petitioner was appointed with consequential benefits.

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I am not inclined to accept the argument of the learned counsel for the respondents No.4 to 8 that the judgment of the learned Single Judge should be so read so as to infer therefrom that though the petitioners would be entitled to claim appointment but not seniority above the candidates who are already appointed even though they admittedly are above them in the merit list. Infact, the judgment of the learned Single Judge merely reiterated the direction of the Division Bench in Hari Ram (supra) in favour of the petitioners. But construction of that judgment in the manner in which the respondents want this Court to do, would negat the mandate of the Rules 20 and 21 of the Rajasthan Education Subordinate Service Rules, 1971, which requires seniority to be assigned as per the inter-se merit of 7 the candidates in the merit list based on common selection. Even otherwise, no such intention of the Court is discernible from reading of that judgment. Mere appointment of the petitioner was a sufficient compliance of the judgment and not total compliance was the view taken by this Court also when contempt petition filed by the petitioners was dismissed. Question with regard to correct and wrong assignment of seniority having arisen subsequent to appointment of the petitioners would obviously give rise to a afresh cause of action. The writ petition filed by the petitioners, therefore, cannot be thrown either barred by resjudicata

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(3 of 3)

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[CW-9886/2018]

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or otherwise improperly constituted.

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In the result, this writ petition is allowed and the respondents are directed to treat the petitioners senior to respondents No.4 to 8 as per their placement in the merit list.”

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Applying the principle, as extracted hereinabove, to the facts of the case at hand the factual position emerges is that the petitioner participated in the recruitment process in response to advertisement issued by Zila Parishad in the year 2012, inviting the applications from the eligible candidates for appointment on the post of Teacher Grade III. It is also not in dispute that the petitioner earlier instituted writ applications and as a consequence of directions issued by this Court, the result was revised in the month of November, 2016; resulting into appointment of the petitioner on the post of Teacher Grade III (Level I/Level-II).

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Undeniably, the petitioner has already been accorded appointment. However, State-respondents have declined seniority and other benefits to the petitioner from the date the petitioner became entitled on account of revision of the result while candidates lower in merit to the petitioner have been accorded those benefits. Thus, the petitioner has claimed benefit of pay fixation and seniority on notional basis from the date juniors to the petitioner, have been accorded in the same recruitment process of the year 2012.

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Accordingly, the State-respondents are directed to extend the benefit of pay fixation and seniority on notional basis to the petitioner from the date junior(s) to the petitioner(s) has/have been accorded with reference to the same recruitment process of the year of 2012.

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(VEERENDR SINGH SIRADHANA),J

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SS/261

Dharmveer Singh v. State of Raj and Ors.

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Dharmveer Singh v. State of Raj and Ors.

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