MANISHA RAO Vs. UNIVERSITY OF DELHI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS petition was filed seeking a direction to the respondent University to (i) include the name of the petitioner on the panel for the academic year 1997-98 of ad-hoc lecturers in the Department of Economics of University of Delhi; (ii) appoint the petitioner as ad-hoc lecturer with immediate effect from August, 1995, except for the period from 27th August, 1996 to 30th April, 1997 during which the petitioner had got part time employment; and, (iii) appoint the petitioner as permanent lecturer against the vacancies in future. Notice of the petition was issued. Though interim relief of restraining the respondent University from appointing any other person was also claimed but not granted.

(2.) IT appears that the petitioner had applied to the Department of Economics of the respondent University for inclusion of her name in the panel of ad hoc lecturers but the said request was rejected. Accordingly, vide letter dated 27th November, 1997, the request of the petitioner for approval to teach in Women's College, Bawana on ad hoc basis was also rejected.

(3.) THE respondent University in its counter affidavit has pleaded that all appointments in Colleges of the Delhi University, whether of permanent lecturers or temporary lecturers are made on the recommendations of a duly constituted Selection Committee consisting of Chairman of Governing Body of the College, Principal of the College concerned, Teacher in charge of the subject in the College concerned, University Representative on the Governing Body of the College concerned, Head of the University Department concerned and Expert in the subject concerned; that a panel of experts in each subject is approved by the Academic Council of the University of Delhi and the College is free to chose anyone from the said panel; that the appointment of the petitioner as ad hoc/part time lecturer in Maharaja Agarsain College was not through duly constituted Selection Committee and thus cannot constitute the basis for subsequent selection as a permanent or temporary lecturer; that the minimum eligibility condition of 55% marks in MA is rigorously enforced; that the petitioner's Ph.D is from MD University, Rohtak and that too from Department of Rural Development and not from the Department of Economics; allegations of bias are denied by stating that a good proportion of candidates empanelled on their list have qualifying degrees from Universities other than Delhi University; that the petitioner was interviewed thrice between the years 1995-1997 by a Committee of senior professors of the Department of Economics for possible inclusion in the panel for ad hoc appointment as lecturer in Economics in Colleges of Delhi University but was not found fit and suitable and not possessing even the most basic knowledge of the subject; that her answers even to questions pertaining to her Ph.D thesis were not satisfactory; that the appointments are not made by the Department of the University but by the Colleges concerned; that the petitioner has never been empanelled; that mere empanelment does not assure appointment which has to be after scrutiny by the College having vacancies.