BASANTA KUMAR PAIT Vs. STATE OF ASSAM

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The 6 (six) writ petitioners herein are holding Bachelors Degree in Mechanical Engineering (BE) under the Gauhati University. Being aggrieved by the refusal on the part of the authorities to allow them to participate in the recruitment process for filling up the 26 posts of Motor Vehicle Inspectors (MVIs) on the ground that they did not possess the requisite qualification as per the advertisement notice, the petitioners have approached this Court by filing the instant writ petition seeking a Writ of Mandamus.

(2.) The facts of the case, in a nutshell, are that on 13/10/2020, the Under Secretary to the Assam Public Service Commission (APSC) had issued an advertisement bearing no. 09/2020 inviting applications for filling up 26 posts of MVIs. As per the advertisement notice dtd. 13/10/2020, the minimum essential qualification to apply for the post was "H.S.S.L.C. with 3(three) years diploma in Automobile or Mechanical Engineering from a recognized Institute of Govt. of Assam/Govt. of India and also duly recognized by the All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE).

(3.) On 13/11/2020, the APSC had issued a corrigendum notice modifying the minimum essential qualification stipulated in the advertisement dtd. 13/10/2020 by including BE/B.Tech (Automobile/ Mechanical) Engineering from a recognized Institution and also added H.S.L.C. along with the H.S.S.L.C with 3 (three) years diploma in Automobile/mechanical as the qualification for the post of MVI. Since the writ petitioners were holding BE degrees in Mechanical Engineering, hence, they had applied for the post of MVI. However, soon thereafter, by issuing notice dtd. 4/10/2022, the APSC had cancelled the advertisement dtd. 13/10/2020. Thereafter, on 25/5/2022, the APSC had issued advertisement no.10/2022 inviting fresh applications for filling up the aforesaid 26 posts of MVIs. However, in the advertisement notice dtd. 25/5/2022, the educational qualification for the post was laid down as H.S.L.C./H.S.S.L.C with 3 (three) years Diploma in Automobile or Mechanical Engineering from a recognized Institute of Govt. of Assam/Govt. of India and also duly recognized by AICTE.