RAM SUNDAR PAL Vs. STATE OF U. P.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Reserved A.F.R. The petitioner is aggrieved by an order of the Superintendent of Police, Hathras dtd. 19/3/2023, cancelling his candidature for appointment as a Police Constable, a post for which he was selected after a recruitment held in accordance with rules, pursuant to an advertisement issued by the Police Recruitment and Promotion Board, Lucknow. The petitioner has also sought consequential reliefs.

(2.) The Chairman, Uttar Pradesh Police Recruitment and Promotion Board, Lucknow, published an advertisement for recruitment of Police and PAC Constables on their website, called PRPB-1 (82)/15. The petitioner applied for the post of Police and PAC Constable (Male) in the direct recruitment of the year 2015, for which, he says, he was eligible. It would be utterly unnecessary to mention details of the petitioner's candidature for those are not in dispute or issue. The petitioner was selected and his name appeared in the merit list. He was issued a provisional admit card to appear in the physical efficiency test, scheduled to be held on 5/5/2016. He appeared in the physical efficiency test and declared successful. The petitioner was then called for character verification, medical examination and the verification of his Classes X and XII mark-sheets. He was directed to appear for the purpose on 14/6/2018 at the Police Lines, Etawah in the morning hours at 8 O' clock. The petitioner's candidature was accepted during the said verification and medical test. The selection being complete, the petitioner, along with other selected candidates, was allotted his district of posting. The petitioner was allotted District Hathras for his posting. Despite being allotted a district, the petitioner was not issued with an appointment letter. When the petitioner approached the Senior Superintendent of Police, Etawah, he was informed that his appointment had been withheld due to a criminal case pending against him, to wit, Case Crime No.564 of 2015, under Ss. 147, 452, 323, 504, 506 IPC and Sec. 3(1)(x) of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 (for short, 'the SC/ST Act'), Police Station Jaswant Nagar, District Etawah.

(3.) It is the petitioner's case that not only was he falsely implicated in the crime, but it was not within his knowledge that the case was pending against him. He was never arrested or summoned by the Police in connection with the crime, that was based on an incident dtd. 17/12/2015. The petitioner was served with a notice by the Police to appear in Court for the first time on 16/3/2016. This notice was issued by the Court of the Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate-II, Etawah and required his presence on 17/3/2016 at 10.30 a.m. at the time of submission of the charge-sheet. The petitioner was tried vide Sessions Trial No.236 of 2016 and acquitted on 17/7/2018. After his acquittal, the petitioner submitted an application dtd. 25/7/2018 to the Senior Superintendent of Police, Etawah, bringing the fact to the S.S.P.'s knowledge that he had been acquitted after trial. When the petitioner was not called or a letter of appointment issued, he instituted Writ-A No.17523 of 2018 before this Court, seeking to enforce his right to appointment on the basis of selection to the post of a Constable.