RAJASEKHARAPPA N Vs. GOVERNMENT OF MYSORE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The Public Service Commission published a notification on 25 August, 1965 in the official gazette bearing the date 9 September, 1965 inviting applications for 4 posts of overseers and 5 posts of foremen in the Government Press, Bangalore. By rules made by the Governor under the proviso to Art. 309 of the Constitution on 1 December, 1960 called the Mysore General Service (Printing, Stationery and Publications Branch) Recruitment Rules, 1960, the qualification for the posts of an overseer and also for the post of a foreman was prescribed. In respect of 50 per cent of the posts of overseers which had to be filled up by direct recruitment under those rules, the qualification prescribed by the Governor which appears against the post of an overseer in Col. (3) is a diploma in printing of a "recognized institute." The rule also stated that the person appointed would be on probation for two years. In respect of 33-1/3 per cent posts of foremen which under the rules had to be filled by direct recruitment, the qualification prescribed by the Governor was the same kind of diploma, namely, a diploma in printing of a recognized institute. In addition, the person who could be appointed was required to process two years' experience in a printing press.

(2.) The petitioner is a compositor in the Government Press, and it is undisputed that he does not hold a diploma in printing of a recognized institute as such. But it is not controverted that during the period between the years 1959 and 1962 the petitioner passed certain examinations such as examinations in "composing higher, proofreading higher, printing higher and machine work higher examinations. These examinations, we are told, were conducted by the Madras Technical Board and the Mysore Commercial Board.

(3.) The argument maintained by Sri Thilak Hegde for the petitioner is that these examinations are equivalent to a diploma in printing of a recognized institute within the meaning of that expression occurring in the Governor's rule, and in support of this postulate our attention was asked to a letter addressed by the Secretary to Government in the Department of Education to the Secretary of the Public Service Commission of the former State of Mysore on 16 April, 1952, and that letter reads :