IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM PRESENT : THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE T.R.RAMACHANDRAN NAIR FRIDAY, THE 1ST OCTOBER 2010 / 9TH ASWINA 1932 RP.No. 835 of 2009(U) -------------------------------- AGAINST THE JUDGEMENT/ORDER IN WPC.35456/2008 Dated 12/02/2009 .................... REVIEW PETITIONER(S): ------------------------------------ STATE OF KERALA REP.BY ITS SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF SPORTS & YOUTH AFFAIRS, SECRETARIAT, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM. BY GOVERNMENT PLEADER SRI.SANDESH RAJA RESPONDENT(S): PETITIONER & RESPONDENT IN W.P.(C) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. N.K.SUBRAMANIAN, NARATTIL HOUSE, PULLUR P.O., IRINJALAKUDA. 2. KERALA STATE SPORTS COUNCIL , REP.BY ITS SECRETARY, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM. R1 BY SRI.KRB.KAIMAL, SENIOR ADVOCATE R1 BY ADV. SRI.B.UNNIKRISHNA KAIMAL R2 BY ADV. P.V.S. SUDHEER THIS REVIEW PETITION HAVING BEEN FINALLY HEARD ON 01/10/2010, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY PASSED THE FOLLOWING: tss T.R. Ramachandran Nair, J. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - R.P.No.835/2009 in W.P.(C) No. 35456/2008-U - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Dated this the 1st day of October, 2010. O R D E R This review petition is filed by the State seeking to review the judgment in W.P.(C) No.35456/2008. 2. Heard learned Govt. Pleader appearing for the review petitioner, learned counsel for the first respondent and learned Standing Counsel for the Kerala Sports Council. 3. The review petition is filed contending that after the coming into force of the Kerala Sports Act, the appointment of regular staff can be made only after consultation with the Public Service Commission, going by Section 44 of the Act. It is pointed out that after the coming into force of the Kerala Sports Act, the Council is not competent to make any regular appointment without prior concurrence of the Government. It is also pointed out that as per Section 6 of the Act and consequent to the reconstitution of the State Sports Council in 2006, a standing committee should be constituted which shall exercise the powers and discharge the functions as may be entrusted to it by the State Sports Council. It is further pointed out that the Government was not a party to the writ petition and rp 835/2009 2 therefore they could not bring to the notice of this Court the above aspects. 4. Learned counsel appearing for the first respondent submitted that even thought Kerala Sports Act has been promulgated, Kerala Public Service Commission (Additional Functions as respects certain Corporations and Companies) Act, 1970 and the Kerala Public Service Commission (Consultation by Corporations and Companies) Rules, 1971 have not been amended to enable the Sports Council to come within the purview of the Act and Rules. It is pointed out that in the absence of any amendment as noted above, the provisions of Section 44 as regards consultation with the Public Service Commission cannot be given effect to. 5. Normally, the procedure for conducting of selection to appoint persons in any establishment will be governed by the Act, Rules and Regulations in force as on the date of the notification. True that by an amendment of the same or by bringing a legislation, the same can be interfered with, but only under known process of law. The requirements for such an exercise are wellknown and are settled by various decisions of this Court and that of the Apex Court. 6. Evidently, even though the Sports Act was brought into force, the amendments in the other enactments and the relevant rules as pointed out by the first respondent, have not been made so far. Therefore, the contention rp 835/2009 3 that only under Section 44 of the Kerala Sports Act alone, any appointment can be made, cannot be accepted. Apart from that, there was no legal impediment for the Sports Council to initiate the process of appointment in terms of the rules and regulations and the procedure which was being adopted by them. No other legal impediment is pointed out by which they are restrained from continuing with the selection process. 7. In the judgment impugned, this Court has only held that as there is already a notification and as the steps for the selection of candidates have been completed, there is no reason as to why the further action in the matter should be kept pending. It is in that context, this Court ordered that the further action for publication of rank list can be finalised. 8. Whether, as pointed out by the learned Govt. Pleader, only a standing committee alone can go into the further procedure for selection, is a matter for the Sports Council to take appropriate decision. I am not finally pronouncing anything upon that aspect. 9. In the light of the above, even if the Government was not a party to the writ petition, in the light of the legal position as pointed out above, this Court cannot accept the argument that in the light of Section 44 of the Kerala Sports Act, appointment of regular staff can be made only after consultation with the Public Service Commission. In that view of the rp 835/2009 4 matter, there is no apparent error in the judgment. The review petition is therefore dismissed. (T.R. Ramachandran Nair, Judge.) kav/