Himachal Pradesh High Court
Village Nanan P.O Manjeer vs State Of Rajasthan And Others 2002(6) on 31 May, 2022
Bench: Sabina, Satyen Vaidya
IN THE HIGH COURT OF HIMACHAL PRADESH AT SHIMLA
ON THE 31st DAY OF MAY, 2022
.
BEFORE
HON'BLE MS. JUSTICE SABINA
ACTING CHIEF JUSTICE
&
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE SATYEN VAIDYA
CIVIL WRIT PETITION No. 2796 of 2022
Between:-
BHAWANA KUMARI, WIFE OF SH. VIJAY
KUMAR, PERMANENT RESIDENT OF
VILLAGE NANAN P.O MANJEER, TEHSIL
SALOONI, DISTRICT CHAMBA, H.P.
......PETITIONER.
(BY MR. ARUN RAJ, ADVOCATE)
AND
1. STATE OF HIMACHAL PRADESH THROUGH
SECRETARY (EDUCATION) TO THE
GOVERNMENT OF HIMACHAL PRADESH
SHIMLA-2.
2. DIRECTOR ELEMENTARY EDUCATION,
HIMACHAL PRADESH, SHIMLA-1.
3. DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF ELEMENTARY
EDUCATION, CHAMBA, DISTRICT
CHAMBA, H.P.
4. BLOCK ELEMENTARY EDUCATION
OFFICER, EDUCATION BLOCK
SALOONI, DISTRICT CHAMBA.
......RESPONDENTS.
(BY MR. KAMAL KANT, DEPUTY
ADVOCATE GENERAL.)
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This Civil Writ Petition coming on for admission
.
after notice this day, Hon'ble Ms. Justice Sabina,
passed the following:
ORDER
Petitioner has filed the petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, seeking following reliefs:-
"i) That Notification dated 7.4.2022 (Annexure P-3) may be quashed and set aside to the extent of Clause 7(i) being unconstitutional, which may kindly be directed to be replaced with the earlier criteria under Clause 7(i) of Scheme 2020 (Annexure P-2) i.e on the basis of distance from school.
ii) That the respondents may be directed to re-initiate selection process in conformity with Clause 7(i) of Scheme 2020 (Annexure P-2) for filling up post of Part Time Multi Task Worker at Govt. Primary School, Kassar Tehsil Salooni, District Chamba, H.P.
iii) That the respondents may be directed to initiate the selection process as prayed for in clause (ii) supra and take the same to logical end in a time bound manner."::: Downloaded on - 02/06/2022 20:03:07 :::CIS 3
2. Learned counsel of the petitioner has submitted that Government of Himachal Pradesh had framed a .
recruitment scheme dated 25.7.2011 (Annexure P-1) for the appointment of Part Time Water Carriers in the schools.
On 16.7.2020, Government of Himachal Pradesh framed another scheme titled Part Time Multi Task Worker Policy, 2020 (Annexure P-2). House of the petitioner is at a distance of about 500 meters from the school.
r Petitioner had donated 4 biswas of land to the school on 16.12.2021.
The policy framed by the State prescribes additional marks for the candidates, who have donated land for construction of school. Petitioner applied for the post of Part time Multi Task Worker in terms of the advertisement. Vide order dated 16.3.2022, this Court disposed of CWP No.420 of 2022 and other connected matters, as the amendment had been carried out in the policy, whereby Clause 18 of the policy was deleted. However, the respondents have amended clause 7 of the policy with a view to cover those candidates, who might have been excluded on account of deletion of Clause 18. Vide amendment notification dated 7.4.2022 Clause 7(i) was amended to the effect that it had changed criteria for distribution of marks, which was earlier ::: Downloaded on - 02/06/2022 20:03:07 :::CIS 4 based on distance from school and now it had been made "distance from school ward wise". There was no .
justification for amending clause 7(i) of the policy. Now, respondent No.4 has issued a letter dated 12.4.2022 inviting applications from the desirous and eligible candidates for the post of Multi Task Worker in Government Primary School Kassar, Education Block Salooni, District Chamba and the candidates are required to furnish ward certificate instead of distance certificate. Petitioner has been prejudiced on account of amendment in the policy.
3. In support of his arguments, learned counsel for the petitioner has placed reliance on Kailash Chand Sharma Vs. State of Rajasthan and others 2002(6) SCC 562, wherein it was held as under:-
"33. The above discussion leads us to the conclusion that the award of bonus marks to the residents of the district and residents of the rural areas of the district amounts to impermissible discrimination. There is no rational basis for such preferential treatment on the material available before us. The ostensible reasons put forward to distinguish the citizens residing in the State are either non-existent or irrelevant and they have no nexus with the object sought to be achieved ::: Downloaded on - 02/06/2022 20:03:07 :::CIS 5 namely, spread of education at primary level. The offending part of Circular has the effect of .
diluting merit, without in any way promoting the objective. The impugned circular dated 10.6.1998 insofar as the award of bonus marks is concerned, has been rightly declared to be illegal and unconstitutional by the High Court.
34. One more serious infirmity in the impugned circular is that it does not spell out any criteria or indicia for determining whether the applicant is a resident of rural area.
Everything is left bald with the potential of giving rise to varying interpretations thereby defeating the apparent objective of the rule. On matters such as duration of residence, place of schooling etc., there are bound to be controversies. The authorities, who are competent to issue residential certificates, are left to apply the criteria according to their thinking, which can by no means be uniform. The decision in the State of Maharashtra v.
Raj Kumar (AIR 192 SC 1301) is illustrative of the problem created by vague or irrelevant criteria. In that case a rule was made by the State of Maharasthra that a candidate will be considered a rural candidate if he had passed SCC Examination held from a village or a town having only 'C' type municipality. The object of the rule, as noticed by this Court, was to appoint candidates having full knowledge of rural life so that they would be more suitable for working as officers in rural areas. The rule was struck down on the ground that thee was no nexus between classification made and the object sought to be achieved because "as the ::: Downloaded on - 02/06/2022 20:03:07 :::CIS 6 rule stands any person who may not have lived in a village at all can appear for SSC Examination from a village and yet become .
eligible for selection". The rule was held to be violative of Article 14 and 16. When no guidance at all is discernible from the impugned circular as to the identification of the residence of the applicants especially having regard to the indefinite nature of the concept of residence, the provision giving the benefit of bonus marks to the rural residents will fall foul of Article 14."
4. Learned State counsel on the other hand has opposed the petition and has submitted that the amendment carried out with regard to the selection criteria/marks as envisaged under Clause 7 of the policy had been amended with a view to provide marks "ward wise". The amendment had not been carried out to help any particular person and would be applicable equally to all the candidates.
5. On 25.7.2011, a Scheme was framed by the State for appointment of Part Time Water Carriers in the schools. The objective of the scheme was that Part Time Water Carriers be provided against vacancies or specifically created posts in schools. The scheme was framed with a view to empower the School Management Committee to ::: Downloaded on - 02/06/2022 20:03:07 :::CIS 7 effectively run the Government schools and to provide employment to unemployed youth in Government schools .
of their villages located in or adjacent to the jurisdiction of Gram Panchayats/Urban Local Bodies and earn a decent honorarium as well. Clause 7 of the scheme reads as under:
"7. INTERVIEW AND MARKS
i) The selection committee shall judge the suitability of the candidates purely on merit.
The Chairman of the committee will keep complete record of the selection process.
ii) The selection committee shall hold interviews by calling all the eligible candidates.
iii) Preference will be given to candidates who are from families without any member in Govt. service.
iv) The selection will be purely specific to a particular school only.
i) In the interview marks shall be awarded to the candidates out of 30.
The distribution of marks shall as under :-
1) For candidates of village/town at distance:
a) Up to 1.5 Kms from school 10 Marks.
b) Up to 2 Kms from school 08 Marks.
c) Up to 3 Kms from school 06 Marks.
d) Up to 4 Kms from school 04 Marks.
e) Up to 5 Kms from school 02 Marks.
2) For candidates whose families
have donated land for school 05 Marks
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3) Candidates belonging to
SC/ST/OBC/BPL 03 Marks.
.
4) Candidates belonging to
unemployed Families 05 Marks.
5) Interview/Viva 07 Marks.
Total: 30 Marks."
6. Thereafter, Part Time Multi Task Worker Policy 2020 was formulated vide notification, Annexure P/3. The 2011, Annexure P-1.
r to objective of the said policy was the same as the scheme of However, the distribution of marks with regard to distance from school was changed. Relevant Clause 7(i) of the policy, 2020 reads as under:-
"7. SELECTION CRITERIA/MARKS (AS AMENDED UPTO DATE)
i) Distance from Schools (08 Marks) (Certificate to be issued by Panchayat Secretary of the concerned Gram Panchayat for rural areas and Executive Officer of Urban Local Bodies for urban areas) For candidates:
(a) From the same ward of the Gram Panchayat/Uran Local Body 08 Marks.
In which school is situated
b) From the other wards of the Gram Panchayat/Urban Local Body 05 Marks. In which school is situated
c) From the adjoining contiguous Gram Panchayat/Urban Local Body 02 Marks. In which school is situated"
::: Downloaded on - 02/06/2022 20:03:07 :::CIS 97. Thus, in the earlier scheme, marks were awarded to the candidates by keeping in view the distance of the .
candidates' village/town from the school, whereas, in the Policy 2020, the marks would be awarded to the candidates by keeping in view the distance from the school and the ward of the candidate. The marks now sought to be given to the candidates with regard to Clause "Distance from Schools" from the ward vide Policy, Annexure P/3 seems to be just and reasonable. Some criteria has to be adopted for distributing marks with regard to distance from schools vis-a-vis. the residence of the candidates. Earlier the criteria was the distance of the village/town of the candidate from the school, whereas, now it is made from the ward of the Gram Panchayat/Urban Local Body of the candidate vis-a-vis the school in question.
8. A perusal of Clause of the new policy does not lead to the inference that the same has been formulated with a view to arbitrarily help/sponsor any particular candidate. Rather the candidates, who belong to the same ward where the school is situated, would get more marks and the candidates from the other wards of Gram Panchayat/Urban Local Body, in which the school is situated, ::: Downloaded on - 02/06/2022 20:03:07 :::CIS 10 would get lesser marks. The classification made in the clause 7(i) of the policy cannot be said to be arbitrary or .
discriminatory. All the persons/candidates from different wards would be treated equally. The State in its wisdom while framing the policy has worked out the criteria to be followed for awarding marks with regard to distance from schools. The said decision of the State does not call for any interference by this Court while exercising extra ordinary writ jurisdiction. After carefully examining the facts and circumstances of the case, we are of the opinion that the impugned notification/policy does not require any interference by this Court.
9. We have carefully gone through the judgment cited by the learned counsel for the petitioner but the same fails to advance the case of the petitioner, as it is based on different facts. In the present case, candidates of different wards have been awarded marks vis-a-vis their distance from the school in question.
10. Accordingly, the writ petition is dismissed.::: Downloaded on - 02/06/2022 20:03:07 :::CIS 11
Pending miscellaneous application(s), if any, shall also stand disposed of.
.
(Sabina) Acting Chief Justice (Satyen Vaidya) Judge 31st May, 2022.
(mamta) r
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