DHON SING KRAMSA Vs. STATE OF ASSAM

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Pursuant to an advertisement, dated 8.10.2007, issued by the Assam Public Service Commission ('APSC'), inviting applications to fill up seven posts of Assistant Director, Town and Country Planning, under Urban Development Department to the Government of Assam, the Petitioner, who is an Assistant Inspector of Excise and a member of Scheduled Tribe (H), Karbi Community, in the State of Assam, applied. The prescribed qualification for appointment to the said post, in terms of the said advertisement, was that a candidate must have passed Post Graduate degree or Diploma in Town/City/Urban/Regional/ Transportation/Planning from recognized University/Institution or equivalent, apart from the educational qualification, so prescribed. This apart, as per the said advertisement, one post was reserved for ST(H). The Petitioner in his 4th semester of M. Sc. Course, in Geography, had specialization (optional paper) in Regional Development and Planning (RDP). As the educational qualification prescribed under the said advertisement, dated 8.10.2007, was Post Graduate Degree/Diploma in Town/City/Urban/Regional/ Transportation/Planning, the Petitioner was, according to the Petitioner, eligible, in terms of the said advertisement, to apply for selection and appointment to the said post and that is why, the Petitioner applied. Following his application seeking to be selected and appointed, the Petitioner received a letter, dated 6.2.2008, issued by the Secretary APSC, inviting the Petitioner to appear, for interview, on 27.2.2008. Before, however, the interview could be held on the scheduled date, the Petitioner received another letter, dated 16.2.2008, issued by the Deputy Secretary, APSC, informing the Petitioner that the interview/viva voce, for the said posts of Assistant Director, has been postponed due to unavoidable circumstances. While the Petitioner was awaiting another call letter to appear for the postponed interview, the APSC has issued another advertisement, dated 20.1.2009, inviting applications for the said seven posts and prescribed, for selection, an educational qualification, which rendered the Petitioner ineligible to be selected and appointed to the said post of Assistant Director. The prescribed educational qualification was as under:

(2.) P.G. Degree in Geography with one paper on Regional Development Planning (RDP), is not eligible to be called for interview for the post of the Asstt. Director, Town and Country Planning.

(3.) The Petitioner's further grievance is that in the earlier advertisement, one post had been kept reserved for ST(H) and the Petitioner could have been selected against the said reserved vacancy, but disqualifying a person, holding the Post Graduate Degree, in Geography, with one paper in Regional Development Planning (RDP), has caused great injustice to the Petitioner and such action of the APSC is mala fide inasmuch as the selection is aimed at filling up the reserved post aforementioned by general candidates and not by reserved category candidates.