SARUNGBAM NIMAI SINGH Vs. STATE OF MANIPUR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) W.P.(C) No.1143 of 2018 has been filed challenging the order dtd. 30/11/2018 as illegal and to direct the official respondents to conduct a review Departmental Promotion Committee by abiding the office memorandum dtd. 15/5/2014.

(2.) The petitioner is a gold medalist in Degree of Fine Arts from the Banaras Hindu University. He pursued Master Degree in Fine Arts in the year 1993 and was awarded Fellowship by the State Kala Academy in the year 1999 and Junior Fellowship Fine Art 2008-2010 Human Resource Development, New Delhi. The petitioner was thereafter appointed as Lecturer in the Imphal Art College vide order dtd. 15/2/1996. Considering the achievements and works of the petitioner and being the senior-most among the teaching staff of the Imphal Art College, the Deputy Secretary (Art and Culture), Government of Manipur, vide letter dtd. 14/12/2017 conveyed approval of the Government to allow the petitioner to hold charge of Principal, Imphal Art College, Manipur, as an interim arrangement till a regular Principal is appointed through a competent DPC. The petitioner was working as Principal in-charge of the Imphal Art College for over eleven months. The petitioner was required to furnish certain documents by the Joint Director (Art and Culture), Manipur, which the petitioner duly furnished. When the petitioner was awaiting appointment to the regular post of Principal, the Vice Chairman, Governing Body, Imphal Art College, issued an order dtd. 30/11/2018 appointing the fourth respondent, Arambam Hemanta Singh, Senior Lecturer, on promotion, to the post of Principal, Imphal Art College.

(3.) It is the case of the petitioner that the post of Principal is a selection post as per the Recruitment Rules and the petitioner being the senior-most lecturer and having discharged the duty of Principal in-charge, he ought to have been considered for the said post. It is added that even as per the Office Memorandum dtd. 15/5/2014, more especially Rule 5.7(b), the officers who are included in the panel for promotion will have to be arranged in the order of their inter se seniority in the lower category without reference to the overall grading obtained by each of them, but ignoring the same, the respondent authorities have adopted a different method than stipulated in the Office Memorandum dtd. 15/5/2014 and appointed the fourth respondent.