Central Administrative Tribunal - Delhi
Yashpal Singh Rajorar (Roll No. ... vs Union Of India on 6 May, 2009
Central Administrative Tribunal Principal Bench OA 1285/2008 with OA 1286/2008 New Delhi this the 6th day of May, 2009 Honble Mr. Justice M. Ramachandran, Vice Chairman (J) Honble Mr. Shailendra Pandey, Member (A) OA.1286/2008 Yashpal Singh Rajorar (Roll NO. 1213721) Constable (Ex.) in Delhi Police, PIS NO. 28950432 R/O 47A/D-1, Kondly Gharoli Complex, M.V.-III Delhi 96 Applicant OA.1285/2008 Sunil (Roll No. 1290569) Constable (Ex.) in Delhi Police, PIS NO. 28990723 R/O C-4G/94 A, Janakpuri New Delhi-58 .. Applicant (By Advocate: Shri Anil Singal in both OAs) Versus 1. Union of India Through its Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs North Block, New Delhi. 2. Lt. Governor of Delhi Raj Niwas, Delhi. 3. Govt. of NCT of Delhi Through its Chief Secretary, Delhi Secretariat IP Estate, New Delhi 4. Commissioner of Police Police Head Quarter IP Estate, New Delhi. 5. Staff Selection Commission Through its Chairman C.G.O. complex , Lodhi Road, New Delhi- 110003 . Respondents. (By Advocate: Shri Ajesh Luthra, for Respondent Nos.1 to 4 and Sh.S.M. Arif for Respondent No.5 in both the OAs) O R D E R (Common) By Shailendra Pandey, Member (A) :
As the issue involved in both these OAs is identical, we dispose of them through a common order.
2. In both these OAs the respective applicants have sought a direction to the respondents to treat them as OBCs for recruitment and appointment to the post of Sub-Inspector (Ex.) [in short as `SI (Ex.)] of Delhi Police through the Combined Graduate Level Examination 2004.
3. The brief facts (for the sake of convenience, the relevant facts have been taken from OA No.1286/2008) of these cases are that the respective applicants belong to the Jat community and applied for the post of SI (Ex.) of Delhi Police in response to the advertisement that appeared in the Employment News for the Combined Graduate Level Examination of the relevant year conducted by the Staff Selection Commission (SSC) which is a body under the Union Government. The Jat Community had been declared as being in OBC list by the Government of NCT of Delhi ( GNCTD). However, it was not included in the Union List of OBCs. Since only the Central List of OBCs was being followed for eligibility under OBC category for the examination to be held by the SSC for the said post, the applicants had applied for the post as general candidates. It is stated by both the applicants that they had been informed by the concerned officials that as and when the decision is taken to extend the benefit of reservation to the categories notified by the Govt. of NCT, the same will be applicable for the applicants also for which OA NO. 1414/04 & 161/04 were pending for adjudication before this Tribunal. Both the applicants qualified the preliminary examination that was held in July, 2004. OAs No. 1414/04 & 161/04 were decided on 22.9.2004, whereby this Tribunal directed the respondents to treat the applicants therein as OBC candidates for recruitment to the post of SI (Ex.) In view of these judgments both applicants submitted their representations to consider them under the OBC category. However, they were not shown under the OBC category since they had filled up their application forms under the general category. Both the applicants obtained information under the RTI Act, 2005 and were informed that they had obtained more marks than the minimum marks fixed by the SSC for appearing in the interview in the OBC category and they had also secured more marks than the last selected OBCs candidates, hence the present OA.
4. The learned counsel for the applicants have rested their case on the decision taken on 29.11.2002 by a High Level Committee headed by the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi that the Combined Graduate Level Examination for the post of SI (Ex.) in Delhi Police should follow the Central List of OBC supplemented by the list of OBCs for the Government NCT of Delhi. As a result, the persons belonging to the Jat community were eligible to apply for the said post from this date.
5. Further, it is contended that this Tribunal vide judement dated 22.9.2004 in OAs No. 1414/04 & 161/04 has already held that the applicants therein (Jat) should be treated as OBC for recruitment to the post of SI (Ex.) and that as many as five Delhi Police departmental candidates belonging to the JAT caste, who had applied under General Category in the application form and had separately requested to treat them under the OBC category in the Combined Graduate Level Examination 2003, were considered under the OBC by the respondents and, therefore, the same principle should also be followed for the 2004 examination.
6. On the other hand, the respondents have argued that the applicants had applied for the Combined Graduate Level Examination 2004 as general candidates. It is submitted that even though they qualified in the main examination they were not called for interview since they could not make the grade at par with the General candidates and that option / information given by a candidate in his application could not be allowed to be changed by him /her at a later stage because this would hamper the processing of the results and would cause much delay. They have further stated that the applicants have requested for change in the category after the release of the result of the examination. They have also contended that the directions issued by the Tribunal in OAs 1414/04 & 161/04 are specific directions and were passed in particular cases and would not be a precedent in general for all candidates. It is also contended that the applicants, when they applied, were aware of the fact that the JAT community of Delhi is not considered as OBC in the Central List of OBCs and that the present OAs are afterthoughts of the applicants after they came to know the marks obtained by them under the RTI Act. Lastly, it is stated that in following the Central List of reservation, the SSC has not deviated from any policy/guidelines formulated by the Central Government and that the process of the results had already been completed before the present OAs were filed.
7. We have considered the rival contentions of both the counsel and have been through the pleadings in both cases.
8. It is not disputed that the applicants in both the OAs are OBCs under the Govt. of NCT of Delhi list of OBCs and the that the decision of GNCTD to consider both the lists of Union Government and GNCTD for OBC for the Combined Graduate Level Examination, etc. was taken in November, 2002. The following paragraphs extracted from Government of India, Ministry of Home Affairs OM No. 14011/39/05-UTP dated 27.12.2005 on the subject of reservation is very pertinent.
(iv) The decision to follow both the Central List as well as Delhi List of OBCs for recruitment to the post of Sub-Inspector was taken on the following grounds:
As per the Delhi Police Act, the superintendence and control of Delhi Police is vested in the Lt. Governor of Delhi. It was, with the approval of the Lt. Governor of Delhi, decided by the Government of NCT of Delhi in 2002 that recruitment to the posts under Delhi Police, a metropolitan force meant to sub-serve the policing recruitment of the National Capital, should continue to be held on all India basis. It was also decided that for reservation of posts for OBCs in Delhi Police, the Central List for all States as also the Delhi List of OBCs notified by the Government of NCT of Delhi should be followed. Accordingly, reservation for OBCs in recruitment to all Group `C and `D posts, except the post of Sub-Inspector which is also a Group `C posts, was being made on the basis of Delhi List of OBCs. It would have been discriminatory not to give the benefit of reservation to the OBCs of Delhi List in recruitment for the post of Sub-Inspector. Therefore, it was decided to allow the benefit of reservation to the OBCs of both Central as well as Delhi List of OBCs in recruitment for the post of Sub-Inspector to maintain uniformity and avoid discrimination. The Ministry of Home Affairs has also decided to maintain all-India character of Delhi Police for which it has been decided that recruitment to the posts under Delhi Police should be made on all-India basis. The natural extension of this decision was to extend the benefit of reservation to the candidates belonging to the backward sections of the society across the country. Therefore, it was necessary to follow the Central List of OBCs for reservation in Delhi Police. Thus, when the applicants appeared in the examination, it had already been decided to extend the benefits of reservation under the OBC category to candidates belonging to the Jat community. Thus, at least from 29.11.2002 onwards after the decision of the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi was taken it would not be fair to deny them this benefit, since the applicants presumably applied under the general category because the advertisement for the examination would have mentioned that only of the list of the OBCs as per the Central Government was recognized for the examination. Both the applicants have also stated that they had been assured by the concerned officials that as and when a decision is taken to extend the benefits of reservation to the categories notified by the Govt. of NCT, the same would be made applicable to the applicants also. Further immediately after the judgment dated 22.9.2004 in OA. 161/04 directing that the applicants therein of the Jat community be treated as OBC; for the recruitment to the post of SI (Ex.), the applicants in both the present OAs submitted their representations for considering them under OBC category. We are aware that once the process of the recruitment is in an advanced stage, the change in the parameters could result in a lot of additional work and dislocation for those entrusted with the duties of conducting examination and making appointments, and it has been stated by the respondents that the processing of the result had already been completed before the instant OAs were filed.
9. However, in view of the factual position mentioned above, that a decision had been taken in Nov., 2002 to treat the Jat community as per the Delhi list as also being eligible for the reservation in the examination etc. as well as the fact that in the 2003 examination, the category of five candidates, who had applied under general candidates was changed to the OBC category, we are of the view that it would be just and equitable to direct the respondents to consider both the applicants in the present OAs under the OBC category and call them for interview (if necessary by holding a special interview) provided they are otherwise qualified as per the rules and take further action depending on their performance. Action in this regard may be taken expeditiously and concluded within a period of three months from the date of receipt of a copy of this order. The OAs are disposed of accordingly. There shall be no order as to costs.
(Shailendra Pandey) (M.Ramachandran)
Member (A) Vice Chairman (J)
/mk/nsnrsp/