01Facts
The petitioner was appointed as Workshop Attendant (Group-D) pursuant to Advertisement No. 4/2018 for recruitment under the Eligible Sports Person (ESP) category.
pp. 2–3, paras 2–4He relied on sports certificates issued by the Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan for participation in cricket events.
pp. 2–3, paras 2–4Following the Division Bench judgment in State of Haryana v. Shankar, candidates selected under the ESP category were required to obtain Sports Gradation Certificates under the Sports Policy dated 25.05.2018 within the prescribed period.
pp. 2–3, paras 3, 6–8 · pp. 11–13, paras 23–24The petitioner emailed the Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan on 23.10.2020, but that institution informed him that it was not issuing such certificates.
p. 3, para 3His services were terminated on 20.01.2021 because he had not produced a valid Sports Gradation Certificate.
pp. 4–5, paras 8–9 · p. 14, para 25He subsequently applied to the District Sports and Youth Affairs Officer for a certificate on 09.02.2021, but the application was rejected on the ground that his certificates related to a Regional Sports Meet and were not covered by the applicable policy.
p. 4, para 4 · pp. 5, paras 11–13The petitioner challenged the termination and refusal to issue the certificate under Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution.
pp. 1–2, paras 1, 502Issues
i.Whether the petitioner’s sports certificates issued by the Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan under the old sports instructions, and relating to a Regional Sports Meet, satisfied the requirements of Advertisement No. 4/2018 and the Sports Policy dated 25.05.2018
pp. 6–9, paras 16–19ii.Whether the petitioner was entitled to a direction for issuance of a Sports Gradation Certificate despite not applying to the competent authority within the prescribed time
pp. 10–11, paras 20–22iii.Whether the termination of the petitioner’s services without a separate show-cause notice was legally sustainable
pp. 7–9, paras 17–19 · pp. 14, paras 25–2703Law Applied
The Court applied the conditions of Advertisement No. 4/2018, which required candidates claiming ESP status to upload a Sports Gradation Certificate issued by the competent authority.
p. 7, para 16It applied the eligibility requirements under the Sports Policy dated 25.05.2018, including that the sportsperson must play for Haryana at the national level or be a Haryana domicile who does not represent another State or Union Territory at the national level.
pp. 3–4, para 6The Court relied on the Division Bench judgment in State of Haryana and another v. Shankar and others, LPA-1332-2019, decided on 09.10.2020, which held that candidates selected under Advertisement No. 4/2018 had to produce certificates issued under the new policy dated 25.05.2018; certificates issued under the old instructions dated 30.11.1993 were not relevant or valid for determining eligibility.
pp. 11–13, paras 23–24Pursuant to that judgment, candidates were granted 15 days to apply for the requisite certificate and were required to produce it before the appointing authority by 31.12.2020, failing which their appointments could be terminated.
p. 13, para 24The appointment letter and undertaking also expressly permitted termination if verification disclosed that the petitioner did not satisfy the applicable eligibility requirements.
pp. 7–8, paras 17–1804Reasoning
The Court held that the petitioner’s certificates did not meet the advertisement or policy requirements because they were issued by the Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan, which was not the competent authority for issuing the requisite Sports Gradation Certificate; they were issued under the old policy dated 30.11.1993; and they related to a Regional Sports Meet, which was not included in the Advertisement or the Policy dated 25.05.2018.
pp. 8–9, para 19 · p. 14, para 25The petitioner’s email dated 23.10.2020 did not cure the defect because it was addressed to an incompetent authority and the institution itself had stated that it did not issue the relevant certificate.
p. 11, para 22The Court further found that the petitioner applied to the competent authority only on 09.02.2021, after his termination and beyond the prescribed period ending on 25.11.2020 for applying and 31.12.2020 for producing the certificate.
pp. 10–11, paras 21–22 · p. 13, para 24The termination was therefore a consequence of failure to establish eligibility under the recruitment conditions and was not shown to be legally erroneous.
The reference to Sumit Kumar v. State of Haryana in the termination order was also held to be explanatory of the procedural background and not a ground rendering the termination invalid.
pp. 9–10, paras 20–2105Holding
The Court answered the issues against the petitioner.
It held that the certificates relied upon were invalid for the purposes of recruitment under the ESP category and that the petitioner had failed to obtain and submit a valid Sports Gradation Certificate within the prescribed time.
p. 14, para 25The termination order dated 20.01.2021 and the communication dated 09.02.2021 refusing the certificate were not interfered with.
The writ petition was dismissed, and any pending applications were disposed of.
pp. 14, paras 27–28Original Court PDF
Vikash PuniavsUnion Of India And Others
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