A.G. BHEEMRAJU, MOHAMMED ASSIFULLA AND A.S. PRASAD Vs. STATE OF KARNATAKA REPRESENTED BY ITS SECRETARY CO-OPERATION DEPARTMENT AND DIRECTOR, AGRICULTURE MARKETING

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS Writ Appeal is filed against the Judgment dt. 20.1.2006 in Writ Petition No. 25372/2005, which was dismissed by the learned Single Judge. The appellants are the petitioners in the Writ Petition.

(2.) THE challenge in the Writ Petition was against Annexure -A circular dt. 25.8.2005 issued by the Government of Karnataka. As per Annexure -A circular, deputation of persons other than Government servants to technical posts in the A.P.M.C is prohibited. The said circular was issued by the Government in the light of the Judgment of the High Court of Karnataka in Writ Petition No. 9639/2005 wherein it was observed by the High Court that in view of Section 58 of the Karnataka APM (Regulation) Act, 1966 any deputation made to A.P.M.C from non -Government source is bad in law.

(3.) SECTION 58 of the Karnataka APM (Regulation) Act, 1966 is extracted hereunder: Section 58: Appointment of Secretary and technical staff to the market committee: (1) Every market committee shall have a Government servant as the Secretary appointed by the State Government or by an officer or authority authorised by the State Government in that behalf. (2) A market committee may also have a Government servant as an (Additional Secretary or Assistant Secretary) or such number Assistant Secretaries as may be determined by (Director of Agricultural Marketing,) appointed by the State Government or an officer or authority authorised by it in that behalf. (3) The accounts and audit staff of every market committee shall consist of Government servants appointed by the State Government or by an officer or authority authorised by it in that behalf. (4) There may be an Engineer and other subordinate staff under him for a group of such number of market committees as the State Government may, considering the importance and the work in such market committees, by general or special order determine. (4 -A) Save as otherwise provided in this Act the (State Government may on the recommendation of the Director of Agricultural Marketing) constitute an enforcement cell headed by an officer not below the rank of a Group -A officer of (the Karnataka Administrative Service or the Karnataka State Marketing Service) to exercise such powers and perform all such duties as may be made, given, issued, exercised and performed by a market committee under any of the provisions of items (iv), (vi) and (xii) of Clause (a) and items (ii), (iv) and (v) of Clause (b) of Sub -section (2) of Section 63 and Sections 66, 67 and 70. (5) All the officers specified under Sub -sections (1), (2) (3) and (4) shall be the servants of the State Government. They shall draw their salary and allowances from the Consolidated Fund of the State. The conditions of service of such officers and staff shall save as otherwise provided in Section 59 be such as may be determined by the State Government.