STATE OF ORISSA Vs. SUBRAT KUMAR TRIPATHY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The State of Orissa and the Staff Selection Commission as Petitioners have filed this writ application challenging the order dated 05.08.2009 passed by the Orissa Administrative Tribunal in O.A. No. 269 of 2008 vide Annexure-5.

(2.) The facts of the case are that pursuant to the advertisement dated 27.08.2002 issued by the Orissa Staff Selection Commission, the opposite party applied for appointment to the post of Sub-Inspector of Police. The opposite party, who is a general candidate claimed appointment as a sports person against the sports quota. He came out successful in the written examination and was called to appear in the psychological test, physical test and viva voce test. He came out successful in psychological test, but fell short of the physical requirement as applicable to unreserved/general candidates. The physical requirement for unreserved candidate was that the candidate must be 168 cm in height and 55kg in weight. The requirement of minimum height for SC/ST candidate was however 163 cm. The opposite party is 165 cm in height and 50 kg in weight and therefore in the physical test he fell short of 3 cm in height and 5 kg. in weight. The opposite party initially filed O.A. No. 1515(C) of 2004 before the Orissa Administrative Tribunal, Cuttack Bench, Cuttack for a direction to the Petitioners to allow him to face the viva voce test and to give him appointment against the sports quota. The Tribunal disposed of the original application on 16.08.2004 directing Petitioner No. 3, the Secretary of the Staff Selection Commission to examine the averments made in the original application and to pass appropriate orders regarding the prayer of the opposite party within two months from the date of receipt of the copy of the order. The further direction was to communicate the decision of Petitioner No. 3 to the opposite party. In pursuance of such order, the Staff Selection Commission rejected the prayer of the opposite party for relaxation of requirement of minimum physical standard and the physical test and the said decision was communicated to the opposite party vide Commission letter No. 1271 dated 07.04.2004 (Annexure-2). Thereafter the opposite party filed the present O.A. No. 2208(C) of 2004 before the Administrative Tribunal, Cuttack Bench, Cuttack, which was transferred to the Principal Bench at Bhubaneswar and renumbered as O.A. No. 269 of 2008 with a prayer to direct the present Petitioners to allow the opposite party to face the viva voce test and to appoint him as S.I. of Police against the post reserved for sports persons in view of the Government of Orissa in G.A. Department Resolution No. 24808- Gen dated 18.11.1985.

(3.) In the O.A., the present Petitioners, who were Respondents therein, filed a Counter Affidavit stating that there was no scope for relaxation of any of the conditions specified in the advertisement in respect of Sports persons. In other words, the candidates claiming appointment against sports quota have to be governed by the criteria laid down in respect of the relevant caste category to which they belong. The further stand of the Petitioners in the counter affidavit was that the present opposite party had filed a representation seeking relaxation and the said representation was not considered as it was not possible to bring any relaxation in individual cases unsupported by any guidelines which will be applicable to all candidates.