1 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION WRIT PETITION NO.6062 OF 2009 Shri Ravindra Mahipat Khankal ..... Petitioner. V/s The State of Maharashtra and Others. ...... Respondents. --- Mr. N.V. Bandiwadekar for the petitioner. Mr. P.I. Khemani, AGP for respondent Nos. 1 and 2. Mr. Mandar Limaye for respondent No.3. ---- CORAM: V.M. KANADE, J. DATE : 17TH JULY, 2009 P.C:- 1. Heard the learned Counsel appearing on behalf of the petitioner and the learned AGP appearing on behalf of respondent Nos. 1 and 2. 2. Rule. Respondents waive service. Rule is made returnable forthwith by consent of parties. 3. By this petition, the petitioner is challenging the order passed by the Education Officer dated 25/06/2009 2 whereby the application filed by respondent No.3, seeking approval to the appointment of the petitioner as a peon was rejected. The petitioner was appointed as a peon in Madhyamik Vidyalay Kalamboli, District Raigad by an order dated 31/08/2007, which is a school run by respondent No.3. The said appointment was made after the selection procedure laid down under the Act and Rules was followed by respondent No.3. He, thereafter, joined the said school as a peon with effect from 01/09/2007. 4. The Head Master of the said school submitted a proposal to respondent No.3, seeking approval to the aforesaid appointment of the petitioner as a peon. Alongwith the said proposal, relevant documents were also annexed. The Education Officer – respondent No.2, however, refused to grant approval by his order dated 25/06/2009 on two grounds mentioned in the said order. The first reason given in the said order is that the backlog in respect of reserved category candidates is not filled-up by the management and, secondly, the post of peon does not comply with the criteria laid down in Government Resolution dated 25/11/2005. 5. It was submitted by the learned Counsel appearing 3 on behalf of the petitioner that so far as the first reason is concerned, since the petitioner himself belongs to N.T.(B) category which is one of the reserved categories and for whom reservation is prescribed under the M.E.P.S. Rules, 1981, the proposal could not have been refused on that ground. Secondly, it was submitted that the second reason is also illegal and contrary to the record. It was submitted that, according to the said Government Resolution, if the strength of the students in the school is upto 500, one person could be appointed as a peon. My attention was invited to the order dated 04/08/2007 passed by respondent No.2 – Education Officer in which it was stated that, at the relevant time, there were about 3000 students and 58 sanctioned Divisions and, therefore, one post of peon was admissible. My attention was also invited to the order dated 25/01/2006 passed by respondent No.2 wherein he had sanctioned 11 posts of peon. It was submitted that, therefore,the petitioner was appointed in the sanctioned post. 6. The learned AGP appearing on behalf of the State Government was not in a position to justify the order passed by the Education Officer and, therefore, he submitted that the matter may be remanded. 4 7. In my view, it is not necessary to remand the matter in view of the admitted position. There is clear non-application of mind on the part of Education Officer. It is not in dispute that the petitioner belongs to N.T.(B) category which is one of the reserved categories under the Rules. The first reason, therefore, is clearly untenable. The second reason also cannot be justified since there were about 3000 students in the said school in the relevant year and, as such, the petitioner was appointed in the sanctioned post. 8. The impugned order is, therefore, quashed and set aside. Respondent No.2 is directed to grant approval to the appointment of the petitioner in the post of peon with further direction to release grant in aid for payment of salary to the petitioner within four weeks from today. 9. Petition is allowed and the Rule is made absolute in the above terms. 10. Petition is disposed of. (V.M. KANADE, J)