Central Administrative Tribunal - Kolkata
Sujit Kr Ghorui vs D/O India Post on 17 March, 2025
1 OA 531/2019
CENTRAL ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL
KOLKATA BENCH
KOLKATA
O.A. 350/531/2019 Date: 17.03.2025
Coram: Hon'ble Smt. Harvinder Kaur Oberoi, Judicial Member
Hon'ble Mr. Suchitto Kumar Das, Administrative Member
In the matter of :
SUJIT KUMAR GHORUI, Son of Basudev Ghorui, aged about 36
years, by occupation-Unemployed, residing at Teghori, Via
Tarakeswar, PO+PS - Tarakeswar, Districy-Hooghly-712410.
.......Applicant
Vs.
1. UNION OF INDIA, service through the Secretary, Ministry of
Communication and Information Technology, Department of Post,
Dak Bhaban, Sangshad Marg, New Delhi-110001.
2. THE CHIEF POST MASTER GENERAL, Department of Post, West
Bengal Circle, Yogayog Bhaban, C.R. Avenue, Kolkata-700012.
3. THE SR. SUPERINTENDENT OF POST OFFICES, Department of
Post, South Hooghly Division, Serampore-712201.
4. THE SECRETARY, Board of Secondary Education, Madhya Bharat
Gwalior (MP), Santi Niketan, Satyadev Nagar Gandhi Road,
Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh-474005.
.......Respondents
For the Applicant : Mr. Arpa Chakraborty, Counsel
Mr. T.K. Biswas, Counsel
For the Respondents : Ms. Dhiswari Nag, Counsel
Digitally signed by Dhrubajyoti banerjee
DN: C=IN, O=Personal, T=4175, OID.2.5.4.65=1335885743022601584xv4l838ygvJ5Z, Phone=
Dhrubajyoti banerjee
90ed2697919465890397c0e615eece98d6903a5f70d28686aacddcc72088fbe2, PostalCode=713409, S=West Bengal, SERIALNUMBER=
3c1d4e3f19f312d282cb79397110e181e5ebdbf76bd6fbc3fbfbb1822c0f4c19, CN=Dhrubajyoti banerjee
Reason: I am the author of this document
Location:
Date: 2025.03.18 11:22:35+05'30'
Foxit PDF Reader Version: 2024.4.0
2 OA 531/2019
O R D E R (ORAL)
Per: Smt. Harvinder Kaur Oberoi, Judicial Member
1. The applicant has approached this Tribunal under Section 19 of the Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985, praying for the following relief(s):
"(a) Impugned Order No. A-1/GDSBPM/Teghori/CAT/OA 350 dated 20.03.2019 issued by the respondent No. 3 is not tenable in the eye of law and as such the same may be quashed.
(b) An order do issue directing the respondents to allow the applicant to join in the post against which he was selected as GDSBPM at Teghari BO treating him as to have satisfied all the conditions for such appointment.
iii) Certify and transmit the entire records and papers pertaining to the applicant's case so that after the causes shown thereof conscionable justice may be done unto the applicant by way of grant of reliefs as prayed for in (i) and (ii), above.
iv) Costs."
2. This is the second round of litigation. The applicant had earlier approached the Tribunal in O.A No. 350/411/2014 challenging the cancellation of his candidature for the post of GDSBPM, Teghori B.O. Learned Counsel for the applicant submits that the applicant had earlier approached the Tribunal challenging the order dated 26.11.2013 whereby the respondents had cancelled the candidature on the following ground:
"....
Therefore, the certificates issued by the Board of Secondary Education Madhya Bharat, Gwallior cannot be given equivalence for employment in Central/State government organizations as observed by the Council of Boards of School Education in India in its communication dated COBSE/C.99/2013 dated 12.11.2013.
......"
3. Ld. Counsel for the applicant submits that when the applicant had approached the Tribunal challenging the cancellation of candidature of the Digitally signed by Dhrubajyoti banerjee DN: C=IN, O=Personal, T=4175, OID.2.5.4.65=1335885743022601584xv4l838ygvJ5Z, Phone= Dhrubajyoti banerjee 90ed2697919465890397c0e615eece98d6903a5f70d28686aacddcc72088fbe2, PostalCode=713409, S=West Bengal, SERIALNUMBER= 3c1d4e3f19f312d282cb79397110e181e5ebdbf76bd6fbc3fbfbb1822c0f4c19, CN=Dhrubajyoti banerjee Reason: I am the author of this document Location:
Date: 2025.03.18 11:22:35+05'30' Foxit PDF Reader Version: 2024.4.0 3 OA 531/2019 applicant, the Tribunal vide order dated 02.01.2019 had issued the following directions:
"7. Since it appears to be an extract of prospectus of 2013-2014 of an institution under National Institute of Open Schooling and the respondents could not be afforded the opportunity to deal with it, the present O.A. is disposed of with a direction upon the respondent authorities to give a personal hearing to the present applicant within a period of 4 weeks to ascertain whether the certificates obtained from the Board of Secondary Education, Madhya Bharat, Gwallior is in fact equivalent to high school and intermediate education, Allahabad. The respondents are directed to pass appropriate orders based upon their revelations for appointment of applicant against the post concerned, within a period of two months thereafter.
8. Accordingly, both the O.A. and M.A. stand disposed of. No costs."
4. Ld. Counsel for the applicant further submits that pursuant to the directions issued by this Tribunal, the applicant had approached the respondents with all the concerning and relevant documents. The respondents were required to consider the said documents, mainly the Matriculation Certificate issued to the applicant by the Board of Secondary Education, Madhya Bharat, Gwallior. The respondents have once again passed an order of rejection dated 20.03.2019 of the said representation. This time the respondents have taken an additional ground to refuse the appointment to the applicant and have rejected the representation of the applicant on two grounds which are stated as under:
"After careful examination of the documents submitted by you on 11.02.2019, it is observed that the documents do not prove that the Board of Secondary Education, Madhya Bharat, Gwallior is equivalent to high school and intermediate education, Allahabad. Moreover, the Council of Boards of School Education in India already reported vide letter No. COBSE/C.99/2013 dated 12.11.2013 that the name of the Board of Secondary Education, Madhya Bharat, Gwallior neither appeared in the list of member-boards of COBSE nor in the list of recognised boards of the Ministry of HRD. Therefore, the certificate issued by Board of Secondary Education, Madhya Bharat, Gwallior cannot be given equivalence for employment in Central/State Government organisation or for pursuing higher studies."Digitally signed by Dhrubajyoti banerjee
DN: C=IN, O=Personal, T=4175, OID.2.5.4.65=1335885743022601584xv4l838ygvJ5Z, Phone= Dhrubajyoti banerjee 90ed2697919465890397c0e615eece98d6903a5f70d28686aacddcc72088fbe2, PostalCode=713409, S=West Bengal, SERIALNUMBER= 3c1d4e3f19f312d282cb79397110e181e5ebdbf76bd6fbc3fbfbb1822c0f4c19, CN=Dhrubajyoti banerjee Reason: I am the author of this document Location:
Date: 2025.03.18 11:22:35+05'30' Foxit PDF Reader Version: 2024.4.0 4 OA 531/2019
5. Ld. Counsel for the applicant submits that the respondents have not considered the documents in the light and spirit of the order of the Tribunal rather they have taken one more ground to reject the case of the applicant which was not taken by them in the first round. On merits, he submits that the applicant has completed his matriculation from the Board of Secondary Education, Madhya Bharat, Gwallior. He very candidly admits that the said Board is not a member of the Council of Boards of School Education (COBSE). He however submits that in view of the regulations under the UP Intermediate Education Act, Chapter XIV, Regulation 2, the said Board is considered as an equivalent to the high school of the Board for the purpose of making the candidate eligible for intermediate examination. The relevant extract from the said regulations under the UP Education Manual has also been annexed by the applicant along with the Original Application. The Board of Secondary Education, Madhya Bharat, Gwallior is recorded at Serial No. 40 of the Regulation 2. He therefore submits that in view of the Board being a recognized Board under the UP Education Manual for the purpose of higher education/intermediate courses or examination to be considered by the UP Board, there was no reason for the respondents to deny the appointment to the applicant.
6. Learned Counsel Ms. Dhiswari Nag appears for the respondents and submits that the respondents have rightly rejected the case of the applicant since the said Board is not a member Board of the COBSE, and as such, cannot be considered as a recognized Board.
7. We have considered the rival submissions made by both the parties.
8. We note that in the impugned order dated 20.03.2019, twin grounds had been taken by the respondents for rejecting the representation. Firstly, the Digitally signed by Dhrubajyoti banerjee DN: C=IN, O=Personal, T=4175, OID.2.5.4.65=1335885743022601584xv4l838ygvJ5Z, Phone= Dhrubajyoti banerjee 90ed2697919465890397c0e615eece98d6903a5f70d28686aacddcc72088fbe2, PostalCode=713409, S=West Bengal, SERIALNUMBER= 3c1d4e3f19f312d282cb79397110e181e5ebdbf76bd6fbc3fbfbb1822c0f4c19, CN=Dhrubajyoti banerjee Reason: I am the author of this document Location:
Date: 2025.03.18 11:22:35+05'30' Foxit PDF Reader Version: 2024.4.0 5 OA 531/2019 said Board is not a member Board of the COBSE and secondly that it cannot be given equivalence for employment since the said Board is not a recognized one. It is the second aspect which is being pressed by the applicant to say that the second ground taken by the respondents is incorrect and illegal in view of the UP Education Manual and the regulations under the Intermediate Education Act as recorded in the said Manual. It seems that while considering the representation, this aspect has been missed by the respondents. Learned Counsel for the respondents also submits that the Council of Boards of School Education (COBSE) vide its letter dated 12th November, 2013 is claiming to be authorized body responsible for verifying the genuineness/recognition of the School Education Boards in India. This very claim has been negated by the Ministry of HRD vide its letter dated 24.04.2017. In view of the letter dated 24.04.2017 of the Ministry of HRD, the insistence of the respondents that the Board from where the applicant has completed his matriculation is not a member of the COBSE itself seems to be unreasonable. However, in view of the Board finding its name being listed at Serial No. 40 in the regulations, the respondents are directed to re-consider the case of the applicant.
9. In view of the same, we are of the opinion that this O.A can be disposed of with a direction to the respondents to consider the representation/matriculation certificate of the applicant in the light of the regulations under the UP Education Manual within a period of 02 (two) months from the date of receipt of a certified copy of this order. Needless to say, in case the said documents submitted by the applicant are found sufficient and the applicant is otherwise fit, he shall be considered for appointment to the said post as per law.
Digitally signed by Dhrubajyoti banerjee
DN: C=IN, O=Personal, T=4175, OID.2.5.4.65=1335885743022601584xv4l838ygvJ5Z, Phone= Dhrubajyoti banerjee 90ed2697919465890397c0e615eece98d6903a5f70d28686aacddcc72088fbe2, PostalCode=713409, S=West Bengal, SERIALNUMBER= 3c1d4e3f19f312d282cb79397110e181e5ebdbf76bd6fbc3fbfbb1822c0f4c19, CN=Dhrubajyoti banerjee Reason: I am the author of this document Location:
Date: 2025.03.18 11:22:35+05'30' Foxit PDF Reader Version: 2024.4.0 6 OA 531/2019
10. Accordingly, the O.A stands disposed of with no order as to costs.
(Suchitto Kumar Das) (Harvinder Kaur Oberoi)
Administrative Member Judicial Member
DB
Digitally signed by Dhrubajyoti banerjee
DN: C=IN, O=Personal, T=4175, OID.2.5.4.65=1335885743022601584xv4l838ygvJ5Z, Phone= Dhrubajyoti banerjee 90ed2697919465890397c0e615eece98d6903a5f70d28686aacddcc72088fbe2, PostalCode=713409, S=West Bengal, SERIALNUMBER= 3c1d4e3f19f312d282cb79397110e181e5ebdbf76bd6fbc3fbfbb1822c0f4c19, CN=Dhrubajyoti banerjee Reason: I am the author of this document Location:
Date: 2025.03.18 11:22:35+05'30' Foxit PDF Reader Version: 2024.4.0