DIPTENDU BHATTACHARJEE Vs. STATE OF TRIPURA AND ORS.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE writ petitioner, who is serving as a Lecturer (Selection Grade) in the discipline of Electrical Engineering in Tripura Engineering College has filed the present petition challenging the selection made to the post of Assistant Professors in various disciplines in pursuant to the advertisement No. 2/2004 dated 1.3.2004, issued by the Tripura Public Service Commission (hereinafter referred to as "Commission'). The petitioner claims that he has an uniformly brilliant academic record and is a B.E. Degree holder in Electronics. He has also obtained postgraduate degree, i.e. M.E. Tel.E. in Computer Engineering from Jadavpur University in the year 1999. He also claims other academic achievements and asserts that he is eligible for being considered an appointment to the higher post of Assistant Professor.

(2.) IT has been contended by the writ petitioner that he has all the requisite qualifications for being considered and appointed to the post of Assistant Professor in the discipline of Computer Science and Engineering and no reason can be discernible as to why his name has not been recommended by the Commission for appointment. Accordingly, discrimination has been alleged in the selection process. The writ petitioner further contends that selection made solely on the basis of interview is contrary to the law laid down by the Apex Court and accordingly, the selection process is vitiated as it has affected the purity of the selection process. The writ petitioner has also challenged the recommendation made in favour of candidates in different disciplines, who have been arrayed as respondents Nos. 6 to 18 in the present proceeding and submitted that the selection having been made without consideration of discipline wise reservation, the entire selection process is vitiated and a direction be issued for fresh advertisement and selection. On the basis of the said contention, the writ petitioner prays for a direction for reservation of posts of Assistant Professor for SC/ST categories on a discipline wise basis and not with reference to the total number of posts of Assistant Professor and has sought a further direction for treating the lone post in the discipline of Computer Science and Engineering as an unreserved post. The petitioner is also seeking cancellation of the selection process and also has sought cancellation of the appointments granted to respondent Nos. 6 to 18 in pursuant to the advertisement dated 1.3.2004.

(3.) APPEARING for the Commission, the learned Counsel Mr. P. Dutta has submitted before the court that the requisition for appointment to the 17 posts has been made by the Government to the Commission by simply indicating that 17 posts of Assistant Professors in different disciplines are to be recruited with the information that out of these 17 posts, 9 shall be considered as unreserved and 8 posts are to be considered as reserved category posts, meant for SC and ST candidates respectively. Since no discipline wise reservation was indicated, the Commission had to evolve its own norm to determine in which discipline and how many posts are to be reserved and which posts to be kept as unreserved.