PATNA, India, Feb. 10 -- Patna High Court issued the following judgment on Jan. 9:

1. This writ petition is filed invoking the writ jurisdiction of this Court under Article 226 of the Constitution inter alia praying for absorbing/regularizing the petitioners against the vacant permanent substantive posts of Personal Assistants (hereinafter to be referred as "P.A.") in the establishment of this Court, who have been continuing on contract basis since their initial engagement from March-April, 2018, and to grant them all consequential benefits including regular pay scale and admissible allowances upon regularization of their services with effect from 31.10.2018.

2. The brief factual matrix relevant for the present purpose is that, the Patna High Court had published an advertisement on 23.03.2017 on its website inviting eligible candidates for direct recruitment to 100 vacant posts of P.A. under the ministerial establishment of this Court in the pay scale of Rs.9300-34800/- (Grade Pay of Rs. 4600) and usual allowances as admissible under the Rules. Responding to the aforesaid advertisement, the petitioners had applied within the stipulated time. Pursuant to the aforesaid recruitment process, the Online Test for recruitment to the post of P.A.-2017 was conducted on 10.12.2017. On 31.03.2018, it was notified vide notice issued by the Registrar General of this Court (Annexure P/3), that none of the appearing candidates including the present petitioners, met the minimum qualifying standard mentioned in Clause-5 of the Advertisement No. P.A./01/2017 and consequently none had qualified. In other words, all the candidates including the present petitioners stood unsuccessful.

3. Vide the same notice dated 31.03.2018, it was notified that owing to pressing need of manpower due to acute shortage of P.As. and in order to meet the requirement and exigencies of this Court, it was decided to engage top 100 candidates, from amongst the non-qualified candidates, purely on contractual basis for a period of six months on a consolidated pay of Rs.30,000/- only per month subject to the terms and conditions mentioned in their engagement letters, which was issued individually to each of the aforesaid candidates. Keeping in view the reservation policy and roster, as adopted by this Court, wherein only 75 candidates could be engaged since 25 candidates belonging to EBC, SC, ST and DQ category candidates could not make it within the said top 100 "unsuccessful" candidates. Consequently, the present petitioners along with other candidates were engaged on contract basis and individual engagement letters were issued. The engagement was subject to the condition that the candidates must clear the minimum qualifying standards as prescribed in the advertisement on completion of six months period of their service and those candidates who cleared the test would be considered for appointment on the substantive post of P.A. on probation.

4. The aforesaid engagement letters (Annexure P/4 series) issued to the candidates including the petitioners reads as under:-

"With reference to your application for the post of Personal Assistant in pursuance of the Advertisement No. P.A/01/2017 dated 23rd March, 2017 and the computer based exam held on 10th December, 2017, it is informed that none of the candidates including you, who appeared at the aforesaid examination, has cleared the prescribed minimum qualifying standards required for selection/appointment on the post of Personal Assistant in terms of the Advertisement.

*Rest of the document can be viewed at: (https://patnahighcourt.gov.in/viewjudgment/MTUjODEwOCMyMDI0IzEjTg==-a68TYuJay70=

Disclaimer: Curated by HT Syndication.