SHANKAR NATH TIWARI Vs. TRIPURA UNIVERSITY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) BY an advertisement, dated 25.05.2009, issued by respondent No.1, namely, Tripura University, applications were invited for appointment to two unreserved permanent posts of lecturers, in the Department of Sanskrit, along with some other posts in various other departments. The petitioner applied and was accordingly interviewed, along with other candidates, on 11.12.2009, by a Selection Committee, which consisted of five members including the Head of the Department of Sanskrit, three experts from outside Tripura University and the Vice-Chancellor of the said University, who presided over the proceedings of the Selection Committee. The Selection Committee prepared a merit list and recommended accordingly the names for filling up the said two advertised posts of Lecturer in Sanskrit department. Following a complaint, received by the respondent University, an Inquiry Committee was constituted by the Executive Council of the respondent University, in its meeting, held on 10.01.2010, for the purpose of examining the entire process of selection relating to appointment of Lecturers/Assistant Professors in the Departments of Geography, Disaster Management and Sanskrit. The Inquiry Committee, so constituted, submitted its report and the said report, along with the recommendations made by the Selection Committee, came up, on 24.04.2010, for consideration, in the meeting of the Executive Council of the respondent University. The Executive Council resolved that the post of Lecturers/Assistant Professors in Geography, Disaster Management and Sanskrit be re-advertised. The Executive Council further resolved that the University should maintain, in future, proper screening process as per rule.

(2.) AGGRIEVED by the fact that the recommendations of the Selection Committee had not been acted upon by the Executive Council and its resolution had been adopted, as indicated hereinbefore, to re-advertise the posts of the Lecturer of Sanskrit, the petitioner has filed this writ petition, under Article 226, seeking to invoke the extra-ordinary jurisdiction of this Court quashing the resolution adopted, on 24.04.2010, by the respondent University and, further, comman-ding the respondent University to give effect to the recommendations made by the said Selection Committee, the principal ground of challenge, posed by the petitioner to the decision to re-advertise the post, being that the respondent University has acted beyond its powers in deciding, without a reference, in this regard, having been made to the Visitor of the University, not to act on the recomm-endations of the Selection Committee and to re-advertise the vacancies, in respect of two posts of Lecturer of Sankrit in the respondent University.

(3.) WHILE considering the present writ petition, it may be noted that under Section 9 of the Tripura University Act, 2006 (in short, the Act of 2006), the President of India shall be the Visitor of the University. The constitution and composition of the Selection Committee are also provided under the Act of 2006 and in terms of Section 18(2), the Vice-Chancellor or in his absence, the Pro-Vice Chancellor, shall convene and preside at the meeting of the Selection Committee. The provisions, relevant for the purpose of this writ petition, appearing in sub-sections (3) (4) (5) of Section 18, read as under: