Court-directed consideration of prior service required relaxation of educational qualifications for the petitioner.

The petitioner was appointed as a daily-wage Peon at the Women’s Training College, Patna, on 13 August 1984 and subsequently worked against a non-sanctioned Class-IV post.

He claimed that, despite being senior, junior employees—including Madhuri Devi—were regularised, whereas his claim was not considered.

Pursuant to an earlier order dated 13 April 2007, a Three-Member Committee considered his case but rejected it, recording that his services had been terminated in 2001 and that his subsequent engagement from November 2003 appeared illegal.

The petitioner challenged the Committee’s decision in C.W.J.C. No. 10541 of 2011.

By order dated 30 July 2018, the High Court directed Patna University to advertise the vacancy caused by the death of Madhuri Devi and to consider the petitioner for regular appointment after granting age relaxation and weightage for the period during which he had worked.

During contempt proceedings, the University issued an advertisement dated 11 May 2023 for one post of Sweeper, prescribing Class 10th as the minimum educational qualification, while granting age relaxation to the petitioner.

The petitioner, who was treated as Class VII/VIII pass, was found ineligible.

The contempt petition was disposed of with liberty to challenge the advertisement, leading to the present writ petition.

Whether the University’s advertisement dated 11 May 2023, insofar as it prescribed Class 10th pass as the minimum educational qualification, was invalid as against the petitioner in view of the earlier direction to consider his appointment with age relaxation and service weightage?

Whether the petitioner was entitled to relaxation of the prescribed educational qualification, in addition to age relaxation and weightage for his prior service, while being considered for regular appointment to the vacant Class-IV post?

Whether the University was required to reconsider the petitioner’s candidature and prepare a merit list after applying the permissible relaxations?

The Court considered Sections 35 and 49 of the Patna University Act, 1976, under which creation of posts and approval of budget require governmental approval.

It also applied the Statute governing the service conditions of Class-III and Class-IV employees of Bihar Universities and Colleges, notified on 4 March 2014, under which the minimum qualification for a Class-IV post was Class 10th pass.

Rules 17 and 18 of the Statute were treated as saving and removal-of-difficulty provisions, permitting appropriate directions or relaxation, consistent with the University Act, the Statutes and governmental rules, where difficulties arose in implementation.

The Court further relied on the binding effect of its earlier order dated 30 July 2018, which required consideration of the petitioner’s candidature with age relaxation and weightage for his prior work.

The Court accepted that the 2014 Statute prescribed Class 10th pass as the normal qualification and that the petitioner did not satisfy that requirement.

However, it treated the earlier order dated 30 July 2018 as a special direction arising from the petitioner’s long service and the University’s allegedly discriminatory treatment, particularly since a junior employee had previously been regularised.

The Court reasoned that directing the University to consider the petitioner’s prior work experience, while granting age relaxation, necessarily required a corresponding relaxation of the educational qualification because the petitioner had acquired that experience before the 2014 Statute came into force.

Rules 17 and 18 were construed broadly as enabling the University and the State Government to address implementation difficulties and to give effect to the Court’s direction.

Consequently, the Court held that the Class 10th qualification could not be applied rigidly against the petitioner and that his candidature had to be assessed after granting the relevant relaxations.

The Court held that the Class 10th educational qualification in the advertisement dated 11 May 2023 was unsustainable insofar as it operated against the petitioner.

Patna University was directed to reconsider the petitioner for regular appointment by granting relaxation of age and educational qualification and by giving weightage for his prior work experience, and thereafter to prepare the merit list.

If the petitioner fell within the zone of consideration after such relaxation, the University was directed to issue a formal appointment order within three months from receipt or production of the judgment.

Pending applications were also disposed of.