Andhra HC (Pre-Telangana)
M. Rama Mani vs Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport ... on 27 March, 2000
Equivalent citations: 2000(2)ALD757, 2000(2)ALT589, [2000(86)FLR703]
ORDER
1. The petitioner's husband, namely late Sri C. Varadaiah while serving as mechanic in the establishment of the APSRTC died on 29-6-1996. The petitioner submitted a representation to the management to appoint her on compassionate ground to the post of Conductor or any other suitable post. The petitioner has passed Intermediate examination conducted by the A.P. State Intermediate Board. The petitioner's case was considered by the management for appointment to the post of Conductor, and during the interview it was noticed that the petitioner has possessed 145.5 cms. of height whereas under the regulations governing recruitment to the post of Conductor, the applicant for the post should possess minimum height of 153 cms. On the ground that the petitioner does not possess the prescribed minimum height, her request for appointment to the post of Conductor was rejected, and accordingly, the Executive Director (Admn.) by proceeding dated 16-2-1998 informed the petitioner.
2. At the time of hearing, the learned Counsel for the petitioner did not assail the action of the respondents insofar as it relates to rejection of the claim of the petitioner for appointment to the post of Conductor. The learned Counsel would contend that the petitioner's case ought to have been considered by the respondents for appointment to the post of any other suitable post like 'cleaner'. On the other hand, the learned Standing Counsel for the APSRTC would point out that there is total ban on recruitment to all categories of posts except the post of Conductors, Drivers and Cleaners, and that the petitioner is not qualified to the post of driver. The learned Standing Counsel would also point out that the management has experienced certain practical difficulties in appointing women candidates as cleaners and, therefore, the management has sent up a proposal to the Government to amend the Recruitment Rules governing the post of Cleaners so as to impose a total ban on recruitment of women candidates to the post of cleaners. It is not the case of the respondent-management that the petitioner is otherwise disqualified to be considered for appointment to the post of Cleaner.
3. Clause (2) of Article 16 of the Constitution provides that no citizen shall, on account of only of religion, race, caste, sex, descent, place of birth, residence or any of them, be ineligible for, or discriminated against in respect of any employment or office in the State. In other words, clause (2) of Article 16 of the Constitution issues injunction against the State not to discriminate among the applicants for the post solely on the ground of sex among other grounds. The petitioner is sought to be disqualified from consideration for appointment to the post cleaner soley on account of her sex, and not on any other ground. The statutory rules are framed by virtue of power under Section 45 of the Road Transport Corporation Act, 1950 (for short 'the Act') governing recruitment to various posts in the Corporation including the post of Cleaner. These rules as regards appointment to the post of Cleaner do not impose any ban on recruitment of women candidates to the post of Cleaner. Simply because the management has sent up a proposal to the Government to accord permission to amend the Recruitment Rules governing the post of Cleaner for disqualifying the women candidates from a seeking appointment to the post of Cleaner, it cannot be said that the refusal of the management to consider the case of the petitioner for appointment to the post of Cleaner on that ground is justified and legal. On the other hand, the refusal is ex-facie quite contrary to the constitutional injunction contained in clause (2) of Article 16 of the Constitution as well as the provisions of Recruitment Rules framed under Section 45 of the Act governing the post of Cleaner. It is also brought to the notice of the Court that in similar fact situation a woman candidate who is the dependant of a deceased employee is appointed to the post of cleaner vide Proceedings No.E2/684(I)/96-RM (NLR) dated 10-2-1998. The instances of appointing women candidates who are dependants of the deceased employees to the posts of Cleaners under the compassionate appointment scheme are noticed by B.S.A. Swamy, J., in APSRTC v. P. Bala Tripura Sundari, . The management of the APSRTC cannot be permitted to practise invidious discrimination among the similarly circumstanced female dependants of its employees dying in harness. Therefore, I do not find any merit in the contention of the learned Standing Counsel for the APSRTC that there cannot be any direction to the management to consider the case of the petitioner for appointment to the post of Cleaner under the compassionate appointment scheme framed by the Corporation to accommodate/rehabilitate the dependants of the employees dying in harness.
4. In the result, writ petition is partly allowed. A direction shall issue to the respondents to consider the case of the petitioner for appointment to the post of Cleaner (Shramik) and communicate their decision to the petitioner within a period of two months from the date of receipt of a copy of this order. No costs.