DASHARATHA PANDA Vs. STATE OF ORISSA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Challenging the orders of the Director, Higher Education, Odisha, Bhubaneswar dated 28.01.2010 and 22-09-2011 as per Annexures-10 and 12, denying approval of appointment/promotion of the petitioner to the posts of Senior Clerk and Head Clerk under opposite party No. 3-college w.e.f. 1.5.1983 and 1.6.1988 respectively, the petitioner has come up before this Court. The short facts of the case are that the Vesaj Patel College, Hemgiri, Duduka in the district of Sundargarh is an Aided Educational Institution within the meaning of Section 3(b) of the Orissa Education Act. The said college was established in the year 1982 and received concurrence of the State Government of Orissa from the session 1983-84 and grant-in-aid w.e.f. 1.6.1988. The college is imparting education both in +2 and +3 stages and is a category-I institution.

(2.) The State Government has prescribed yardstick for appointment of the non-teaching staff for the private colleges as per Government circular dated 8.7.1977, Annexure-1, and as per the yardstick a college having roll strength up to 250, is entitled to have one post of Sr. Clerk and one post of Jr. Clerk. The yardstick for appointment of Ministerial staff has been prescribed under clause-I of the statement, which reads as follows:

(3.) Following the due procedure of selection, the petitioner was selected and appointed as a Clerk in the college by the Governing Body pursuant to appointment order issued on 30.06.1982, vide Annexure-2, and he joined on 1.7.1982, vide Annexure-3. Thereafter he was promoted to the post of Sr. Clerk by the Governing Body pursuant to resolution No. 5 dated 3.8.1983 w.e.f. 1.5.1983 which was communicated to the petitioner, vide letter No. 315 dated 24.10.1983 Annexure-4. While the petitioner was so continuing, since the roll strength of the college increased, the Governing Body in its resolution No. 12(v) dated 27.7.1988 promoted him to the post of Head Clerk w.e.f. 1.5.1988 which was communicated to him vide letter No. 481 dated 26.10.1988 Annexure-5. The petitioner had been promoted and appointed to the posts of Sr. Clerk and Head Clerk prior to the institution came into grant-in-aid fold and while approving the staff position of the college, the Director, Higher Education, Orissa, opposite party No. 2, vide his order dated 09.03.1990 (Annexure-6) communicated the order of approval of appointment of the petitioner against the post of Jr. Clerk only w.e.f. 1.7.1982 and his eligibility to receive 1/3rd grant-in-aid from 1.6.1988. Since the promotion of the petitioner to the posts of Sr. Clerk and Head Clerk was not approved, the college authority requested opposite party No. 2 to accord approval to the promotions of the petitioner, but the matter lay pending for no reason. The Director, opposite party No. 2 thereafter by his letter No. 51315 dated 11.11.1996 directed the Principal of the college to submit the necessary proposal for approval of appointments of the staff members those who were appointed due to increase of roll strength of the college. Accordingly, the college submitted the records for approval of promotion of the petitioner and other staff members on 29.11.1996, vide Annexure-7. The promotion of the petitioner having not been approved by the Director, the college of the petitioner submitted another proposal for approval of promotions of the petitioner in the posts of Sr. Clerk and Head Clerk by its letter No. 843 dated 8.11.2004, Annexure-9. Since no action was taken with regard to approval of the petitioner's promotion, he filed W.P.(C) No. 3874 of 2009 before this Court which was disposed of on 29.6.2009 directing the Director to dispose of the proposal of the Principal of the college to approve the promotion of the petitioner to the posts of Sr. Clerk and Head Clerk. On receipt of the order passed by this Court, the Director, Higher Education, Orissa rejected the claim of the petitioner in his office order No. 2879 dated 28.1.2010, Annexure-10. Assailing the said order dated 28.01.2010 passed by the Director, Higher Education, Orissa, Annexure-10, rejecting the claim of the petitioner with regard to approval to the posts of Sr. Clerk and Head Clerk, the petitioner again approached this Court by filing W.P.(C) No. 5898 of 2010 disposed of on 13.4.2010, Annexure-11 directing the Director to reconsider the same in consonance with the ratio of the decision of this Court in the case of Rajendra Prasad Singh v. State of Orissa and others, 2002 93 CutLT 346. In response to the same, the Director, Higher Education, Orissa once again rejected the claim of the petitioner, vide impugned order dated 22.9.2011, Annexure-12, hence this writ petition.