VARINDER KUMAR Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This writ petition is filed for issuing a writ of mandamus directing respondent No. 3 to appoint the petitioner as Naib Tehsildar instead of Kanungo.

(2.) The petitioner's father while working as Junior Engineer in the Irrigation Department died on 11.5.1988. The petitioner applied to be appointed in the Irrigation Department where his father was working at the time of his death, but the Irrigation Department could not appoint the petitioner due to administrative grounds. Then the petitioner applied to the Financial Commissioner (Revenue) Punjab for being appointed Naib Tehsildar. The Financial Commissioner in turn directed the Commissioner to appoint the Petitioner as Naib Tehsildar by his letter dated 16.2.1989. After the receipt of the said letter, the Commissioner, Ferozepur Division considered the case of the petitioner and found him unsuitable for appointment as Naib Tehsildar and accordingly communicated to the Financial Commissioner in his letter dated 3.5.1989 vide Annexure P-6. Thereafter the petitioner filed a writ petition in this Court bearing No. 3051 of 1990. The said writ petition was allowed on 30.8.1990 with a direction to the Commissioner, Ferozepur Division, Ferozepur to consider the case of the petitioner for appointment as Naib Tehsildar on priority basis after testing the suitability of the petitioner under the rules and instructions. This Court also directed that the Commissioner shall pass a speaking order giving reasons about his non-suitability in case the petitioner was not found to be suitable. After the said order of this Court, the Commissioner tested the suitability of petitioner for appointment as Naib Tehsildar and by his order dated 6.11.1990 the Commissioner found the petitioner not suitable for appointment as Naib Tehsildar, but he found him suitable to the post of Clerk or Kanungo. Accordingly, the Commissioner offered to the petitioner to accept any one of the posts namely that the Clerk in Deputy Commissioner's office or Kanungo District Ferozepur. The petitioner accepted the offer to be appointed as Kanungo in District Ferozepur by his letter dated 13.11.1990 under protest. After joining as Kanungo, the petitioner filed the present writ petition seeking a writ of mandamus directing the respondents to appoint him as Naib Tehsildar.

(3.) The Government of Punjab issued a circular in the year 1986 for appointment of the widows and dependents of the deceased Government employees on priority list in the State Services. Under the said circular, the dependents of the deceased employees who died in harness are being provided with employment in the State Services. The said instructions do not say that a dependent of the family of the deceased employee is entitled to a particular post. The rules have been framed only to ameliorate the condition of the dependents of the family of the deceased employee and to provide immediate relief to them. When the petitioner applied for job in the Revenue Department of the State of Punjab on the death of his father who was working in the Irrigation Department, the Commissioner did not find him suitable for his appointment as Naib Tehsildar.