SAGNIK PAL Vs. NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) By means of these writ petitions being WP(C) No.342 of 2018 [Dr. Sagnik Pal and Others versus The National Institute of Technology, Agartala and Others], WP(C) No. 343 of 2018 [Sri Debashis Podder and Others versus The National Institute of Technology, Agartala and Others] and WP(C) No. 367 of 2018 [ Sri Santanu Chakraborty and Others versus The National Institute of Technology, Agartala and Others], the petitioners have urged for issuance of Writ of Certiorari for setting aside the advertisement dated 22.09.2017 [Annexure-25 in WP(C)No.342 of 2018]. That apart, it has been urged that in terms of the model recruitment Rules for faculty of NIT [Annexure-1 in WP(C)No.342 of 2018] their services shall be regularized in the post of Assistant Professor on their obtaining of Ph.D. Degree, in the course of their service in the post of Assistant Professor on contract or to extend their period of contract by the required period for completing Ph.D. Degree for purpose of regularization. It has been also urged that by a Writ of prohibition, the respondents be directed not to discontinue the services of the petitioner in the post of Assistant Professor [on contract basis]. Further, it has been urged to stay the further implementation of the advertisement dated 12.09.2017.

(2.) At the outset, it has to be noted that the petitioners in WP(C)No.342 of 2018 have completed their Ph.D. after their engagement on contract basis. The petitioners in WP(C)No.343 of 2018 are on the verge of completion of their Ph.D. The petitioners in WP(C)367 of 2018 were appointed as the Assistant Professor on contract basis in the branch of Science and Humanities unlike the petitioners of the other writ petititons who belong to the branch of engineering. The petitioners No.2,3,6,7,8,11 and 12 of the writ petition being WP(C)No.367 of 2018 were recruited on contract basis without Ph.D. degree and the petitioners No.1,4,5 and 9 were recruited on contract basis with Ph.D. degree. But the petitioners No.2,3,6,7,8,11 and 12 have completed their Ph.D. on their engagement on contract basis. Only the petitioner No.10 in WP(C)No.367 of 2018 has not been given any opportunity to complete Ph.D. even though, he had submitted a representation to the competent authority. According to the petitioners, for their engagement as Assistant Professor on contract basis, a transparent selection process was followed. The due selection committee under Statute 28(3) of the NIT was formed for this purpose. In the advertisement for such selection, it had been provided that the persons who would like to apply for the said engagement must have M.Tech. in various disciplines for Engineering and master degree with 1st class in physics, mathematics and chemistry. It had been categorically provided that Ph.D. would be preferred. According to the petitioners, their engagement on contract basis has been made under the NIT Faculty Recruitment Rules, 2011, inasmuch as they were appointed without Ph.D. on contract basis. The petitioners are serving in the NIT Agartala without interruption and continuously for a period of more than six years.

(3.) There is no dispute in the bar that Ph.D. degree is the minimum qualification for a regular faculty position in NIT. The candidates who are engaged without Ph.D. may only be engaged as Assistant Professors on contract basis. By the said NIT Faculty Recruitment Rules, 2011, which according to the petitioner, has come into force NIT shall provide the necessary facilities such contract faculty to complete their own Ph.D. either within the institute or outside. A deficiency in respect of granting extension to such facility, however, will not be a ground for award of regular post without a Ph.D. degree. The petitioners, however, have acceded that if they registered poor progress on their Ph.D. work, there shall be an enquiry by a committee as provided under the said Rules, 2011. The committee shall be constituted by one external expert. Rule 24(5) of the said Rules provides that on award of Ph.D. degree an incumbent will be given regular position with effect from the date of engagement on contract with provision of one year probation after regularization. Only those rules have enabled the respondents to engage the petitioners without Ph.D. degree as the contract faculties. It has been further provided by Entry 24 (v) of the NIT Faculty Recruitment Rules, 2011 that on award of Ph.D. degree, an incumbent will be given regular faculty position with effect from the day of their engagement on contract with one year probation after regularization.