BILAL ASHRAF WAZA Vs. U.T. OF J&K

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner, in the instant petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution, has implored for the following reliefs:

(2.) The facts, under the shade and cover of which the aforesaid reliefs have been prayed and as are stated in the petition, are that respondent 2 invited applications for engagement of X-Ray Assistants on academic arrangement basis under SRO 384 of 2009 dtd. 14/12/2009 read with SRO 409 of 2013, prescribing the eligibility qualification therein as 10+2 or above with diploma in the line from a recognized institute. 20 points were prescribed for basic qualification and 80 points for technical qualification in the said Advertisement Notice, and that the petitioner applied for the aforesaid post and in the provisional merit list prepared in December, 2019 by the official respondents, was shown to be figuring at serial No.4 having secured 76.2 points and the private respondents herein having secured 72.1, 71.0 and 71.0 points respectively placed in the said provisional merit list at serial Nos.14, 23 and 24 respectively. However, in the final selection list the petitioner was not shown as selected whereas the private respondents were shown to be selected, aggrieved whereof, the petitioner has questioned the said selection on the grounds that the same is illegal and arbitrary besides being violative of Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution for the petitioner having secured more merit/points than the private respondents, has not been selected.

(3.) Objections to the petition have been filed by the respondents wherein the petition is being opposed and the exclusion of the petitioner from the selection is justified on the ground that the diploma obtained by the petitioner was not found valid in view of Government Order No.828-HME of 2019 dtd. 18/9/2019, while stating further that upon receipt of applications from the aspiring candidates against the post in question, a letter came to be addressed to the Registrar, State Paramedical Council, Jammu ( for short the Council ) vide No.AHJ/2019/3970 dtd. 11/10/2019, whereafter it came to be resolved that only those candidates would be considered who had completed their diploma/ technical course from an institute which is recognized by the Council in terms of Government Order dtd. 18/9/2019 supra and till the year 2016, only three institutes, namely, Paramedical Technology, Pahari Chatterpuri, New Delhi, Sai Institute of Allied Sciences, Channa Patana, Ramanagaram, Karnataka, and Institute of Public Health and Hygiene Mahipalpur, New Delhi, were recognized by the Council and, therefore, in terms of the aforesaid decision, the final selection list came to be issued on 25/3/2021 and the petitioner excluded therefrom being ineligible in terms of Government Order dtd. 18/9/2019 read with Government Order No.122-JK(HME) of 2020 dtd. 4/2/2020, and also on the ground that registration certificate was not enclosed with the application form by the petitioner. Heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the record.