PUSHPALATA MADHUKAR LEKURWALE Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) BY this application under Section 19 of the Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985, the applicant seeks to quash and set aside the select list prepared by respondent No. 1 for appointment to the post of Junior Hindi Translator at Headquarters Goa Naval Area, Vasco -De -Gama as illegal and further declaration that the applicant deserves to be appointed on the said post. The facts of the case in brief are that the applicant belongs to Mali (OBC Category) and qualified the M.A. in English Literature and Hindi from the recognized University. Presently she is working as Assistant Teacher in Primary School at Amravati.

(2.) ON 7.8.2010, the respondent No. 1 published an advertisement in the "Employment News" Newspaper for filling up one post of Junior Hindi Translator from OBC Category, for which necessary eligibility criteria was prescribed therein. Since the applicant fulfilled the same, she forwarded an application to respondent No. 1 along with copies of requisite documents. The applicant was called for written examination along with some other candidates on 8.4.2011. Only 3 candidates qualified the said test including the applicant respondent No. 2 and one Shri Ramesh T. Pande, the third candidate. All of them were called for the oral/personal interview. The applicant appeared for the same on 1.6.2011. At the time of the interview, it was noticed by the applicant that the respondent No. 2 and the third candidate do not possess the requisite educational qualification.

(3.) ON notice, the respondent No. 1 appeared and resisted the claim by way of affidavit in reply dated 9.8.2012 denying all the adverse allegations and averments made in the application. According to respondent No. 1, in pursuance of the advertisement published, in all 45 applications were received. The respondent No. 2 and two more candidates were referred by the Employment Exchange of Goa, and rest of the applications were received by post or by hand delivery in the office. A selection committee was formed. All the 45 candidates were called for written test. However, only 9 appeared for the same. The applicant, respondent No. 2 and one Shri Ramesh T. Pande alone qualified for the personal interview. Since a Selection Committee/Recruitment Board was constituted for conducting the entire process of examination, the personal interviews of the 3' successful candidates were held on 1.6.2011. Marks were allotted to them considering their performance in the written examination, and the interview, and a merit list was prepared in which the respondent No. 2 was found to have secured 100 marks out of 200 and the applicant secured 92 marks out of 200. There being only one sanctioned post of Translator in Hindi, and since the respondent No. 2 secured highest marks and was eligible for the said post, she was selected.