Anupal Singh . vs The State Of Uttar Pradesh Through ...

2. Brief facts which led to filing of these appeals are as under:-

3. Number of writ petitions came to be filed before the High Court by the unsuccessful candidates against respondents No.1 to 4 and by impleading some of the successful candidates assailing the validity of the Office Memorandum dated 12.10.2014 and the result declared on 21.05.2015 praying that they be quashed. They further prayed for direction to respondents No.1 to 4 to prepare the result afresh without giving effect to Office Memorandum dated 12.10.2014. It was contended that change in the number of vacancies in different categories is illegal and the same amounts to changing the rules of the game in the middle of the selection process. The impugned result was also assailed on the ground that it is in contravention to Section 3(1) of UP Reservation Act, 1994 and Rule 15(3) of UP Subordinate Agriculture Services Rules, 1993 (Agriculture Service Rules, 1993) and that the percentage of reservation to SC/ST and OBC categories crossed the upper limit of 50%.

5. Being aggrieved by the impugned judgment, the appellants who are the selected candidates and have already joined their respective posts have filed these appeals before this Court. Vide order dated 03.03.2017, this Court ordered to maintain status-quo as existing on the said date.

19. The posts of Technical Assistant Grade-III are Class-III Posts which are governed under the Agriculture Service Rules, 1993. The posts were restructured with effect from 25.10.2007. The pay scale of the aforesaid posts was fixed as Rs.3200-4900 and the total number of sanctioned posts of Technical Assistant Grade-III was 10,531. After restructure of the posts, the details of the vacancies were worked out in which it was found that 10,531 posts were sanctioned out of which 5,860 persons were working. On that ground, the total vacancies were determined as 4,671; after making deduction of 2% as per Government Order dated 05.03.2002, the total vacant posts were shown as 4,578 and the requisition was sent to the UP Public Service Commission on 03.10.2012. Subsequently, the number of posts were increased by 2,092 out of which, as per Government Order dated 05.03.2002, 2% had been deducted and vide requisition dated 30.04.2013, a requisition was 14 sent showing the increased vacant posts as 2,050 out of which total number of vacancies against the OBC quota was shown as 554. In the earlier requisition dated 03.10.2012, the total number of vacancies against the OBC quota were shown as 12. Thus, after sending the second requisition, total number of vacancies against the OBC quota were shown as 554 + 12 = 566.

22. The Government Agriculture School, Bulandshahar, Government Agriculture School, Chargawan-Garakhpur and Government Agriculture School, Jhansi were run by the Agriculture Department. The schools were providing certificate of two years in Krishi Prasar Diploma and the persons undertaking aforesaid diploma during 1981 to 1987 were required to be appointed directly without any selection. However, after enforcement of the Agriculture Service Rules, 1993 since the diploma holder of 1981 to 1987 could not be appointed, the Directorate has sought guidelines from the State Government vide its letter dated 22.01.1998. The State Government vide its letter dated 04.06.1998 granted the relaxation and directed the appointment of Agriculture Diploma Holders who were 1822 in number, out of which 1749 had joined up to 1998. Since at the time of determination of the vacancy, the OBC category persons appointed on the basis of the Agriculture Diploma Holders Certificate were also counted against the vacancy in OBC category while they were not required to be counted against the OBC category, the wrongful calculation had been arrived at. The earlier requisition sent showing only 566 vacancies against the “OBC quota” while in fact it should have been 2030, as all the diploma holders were appointed against the “General quota” and they have not been appointed against the “OBC quota”. According to the department, subsequent requisition was merely a rectification of the 16 earlier mistake. On the date of advertisement, the actual vacancies of OBC was 2030 but on account of wrongful calculation by the department, it was advertised as 566.

24. After taking the opinion of the Personnel Department, the first respondent vide order dated 20.08.2014 approved the vacancies for different categories of persons in accordance with the applicable Agriculture Service Rules and sent the revised requisition as under:-

40. In K. Manjusree, the selection to ten posts of District and Sessions Judge (Grade-II) in the Andhra Pradesh Higher Judicial Service in pursuance of the advertisement dated 28.05.2004, was the subject matter of the appeal. The selection was on the basis of written examination followed by an interview. There were no minimum cut-off marks prescribed for clearing the interview. After the selection process was completed and the select list was prepared by the interview committee which was approved by the Administrative Committee, when the matter was placed before the Full Court, the Full Court authorized the Chief Justice to constitute a committee of judges for preparing the list of candidates to be recommended for appointment of District and Sessions Judge (Grade-II). Accordingly, the Chief Justice appointed a sub-committee 27 of two judges which prepared a fresh list of candidates for appointment prescribing minimum qualifying marks for the interview. The sub-committee was of the view that apart from applying the minimum marks for the written examination, the cut-off marks/percentage should be applied for interview marks also and those who failed to secure such minimum marks in the interview, should be considered as having failed. The sub-committee thus prepared a fresh merit list. In those facts and circumstances of the case, the Supreme Court set aside the select list by holding that the introduction of the requirement of cut-off marks for the interview after the entire selection process was completed amounted to changing the rules of the game after the selection process was almost complete which is impermissible.

Plea of res judicata

60. In the present case, before the High Court, the contentions raised were the same and common arguments were advanced. The High Court dealt with the batch of writ petitions and disposed all of them by common judgment. Since it is a common judgment with common reasonings, the present batch of appeals before us would not result in any inconsistent decree or order as all of them arise out of the common judgment containing common operative portion of the judgment.

63. Before the High Court in several writ petitions, unsuccessful candidates challenged the revised notification dated 12.10.2014 and 41 also the result dated 21.05.2015 published on 22.05.2015. In all the writ petitions, some contentions were raised and the writ petitions were disposed of by the common judgment. Thus, the contentious issues raised by the parties stood determined on the same set of facts and on the same reasonings. There is no merit in the contention that the judgment passed by this Court would bind only the parties in Writ-C No.34196 of 2015 and that the other judgments passed by the High Court would stand and operate as res judicata. As held in M/s Shenoy and Co. and other judgments, to do so is to ignore the binding nature of a judgment of this Court under Article 141 of the Constitution of India.

Non-impleading of successful candidates in the writ petition

72. In the counter affidavit filed by the State of U.P., it is stated that the candidates who were selected but not issued appointment letter filed a Writ Petition No.6198 of 2016 and the High Court vide order dated 02.03.2016 has directed the State to issue appointment letter in favour of the petitioners thereon. On request from the Agricultural Department, the Government after taking the opinion of Chief Standing Counsel has filed the Special Appeal before the Division Bench challenging the order dated 02.03.2016. The said Special Appeal was tagged with the Writ-C No.34196 of 2015. Since in Writ-C No.34196 of 2015, the High Court quashed the revised requisition dated 12.10.2014 and the result and quashed the entire selection process subsequent to the declaration of the written examination, consequently the Special Appeal came to be dismissed.

77. Summary of Conclusion:-

78. In the result, the common impugned judgment dated 10.02.2017 of the High Court in WP(C) No.34196 of 2015 and batch of writ petitions is set aside and these appeals are allowed. The private respondents/intervenors and 906 candidates who were not issued appointment orders and those who filed writ petitions before the High Court shall be granted age relaxation as one-time measure to participate in the upcoming recruitment. Age relaxation is strictly a 52 one-time measure. Consequently, all the intervenors/impleading applications stand dismissed.

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