SANSAR CHAND Vs. STATE & ORS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) To the exclusion of the petitioner, respondents no. 5 & 6 have been appointed as Rehbar-e-Taleem (for short R.E.T) Teachers in Government Middle School and Government Primary School, Kool Kalan, Tehsil Bishnah. Petitioner claim preference as against respondents no. 5 & 6 as being resident of locality i.e., village Kool Kalan, Tehsil Bishnah and according to him respondents no. 5 & 6 are residents of village Rathana Chak Nanak, Tehsil R.S.Pura.

(2.) The respondents no. 5 & 6 also claimed to be residents of village Kool Kalan and also claimed to posses superior merit and higher qualification as compared to the petitioner. Vide order dated 20th of April' 2009, while noticing the aforesaid features, District Development Commissioner, Jammu was directed to conduct enquiry and report within four weeks the actual position of the residence after conducting spot verification. In compliance thereof, Deputy Commissioner has visited the spot, heard the parties and thereafter has filed a detailed report. In the report, amongst other things, he has also highlighted the objective of engagement of R.E.Ts. While doing so, has recorded that R.E.T teacher to be engaged shall belong to the village where the deficiency of the staff is assessed. It is on the certification of the Village Level Committee (for short V.L.C) about non availability of the local candidate within the village, V.L.C can draw up panel from the adjoining village. He has concluded that village Kool Kalan was repeatedly devastated in past by floods and majority of the population got dislocated and displaced population created their new local colonies, which continued to be named as Kool Kalan irrespective of their village where they have settled in. The location/land of Government Primary School and Government Middle School, Kool Kalan is not located on the revenue land of village Kool Kalan but on the land located in the village Arnia, but schools continued to be named as Kool Kalan. Respondents no. 5 & 6 respectively who are residing at a distance of 500 meters and 100 meters from Government Primary School, Kool Kalan. Even though respondent no.5 resides in the village Kothey Chak Nanak and respondent no.6 in village Kothey Rathana, the house of the petitioner is located at a distance of more than 1.5 Kilometers from the said schools. The Deputy Commissioner has reported that the petitioner actually belongs to village Kool Kalan, so technically his claim of preference has merit, but keeping in view the object of the R.E.T Scheme, the residence of the respondents no. 5 & 6 i.e., Kothey Rathana and Kothey Chak Nanak and then the location of the schools in the village Arnia satisfies the requirement of the Scheme.

(3.) What would emerge from the report of the Deputy Commissioner is that the respondents no. 5 & 6 are not actually residents of village Kool Kalan and also the schools i.e. Government Primary School and Government Middle School, Kool Kalan are located in village Arnia. Both respondents no. 5 & 6 are residing at a small distance from the schools but on technical aspect the petitioner being resident of village Kool Kalan, is also justified.