SUDHAKAR GHADEI Vs. STATE OF ORISSA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) FACTS more or less are not in dispute. The petitioner belongs to the 'tiar' community which is a Scheduled Caste. He1 graduated from the Utkal University in 1962. In the competitive examination held by the Orissa Public Service commission for the year, the petitioner secured the 105th position in the list of 133 successful candidates. He was the only successful scheduled caste candidate. The Public Service Commission placed him under Group 'b' with the following observation : "there were fifteen candidates and seven candidates belonging to the scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes respectively. Five scheduled caste candidates and four scheduled tribe candidates did not take the examination. Out of the remaining candidates who appeared at the examination only one scheduled caste candidate qualified himself at the examination. He is Sri Sudhakar Ghadei who occupies the 105th position in the enclosed list. The commission, having regard to the maintenance of efficiency or administration consider him suitable for appointment to the services under Group B. He was appointed to the Junior Branch of O. F. S. " (Orissa Finance Service ). The Service Commission recommended the first 33 candidates in the list of 133 as being suitable for appointment to the services under Group 'a', under the Orissa administrative Service, Class II (Appointment by Competitive Examination)Regulations, 1959, (hereinafter referred to as the Regulations ). Government appointed 27 candidates to the services under Group 'a'. In the ordinary course, the petitioner could not have been appointed to any of the Services under Group 'b' as, in all Government appointed 86 candidates to the Services in both the groups and the position of the petitioner was 105th. The Service Commission, however, having regard to the maintenance of efficiency of administration considered him suitable for appointment to any service under Group 'b', in consideration of the special provision relating to reservation of vacancies for members of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. The petitioner's case is that as there is reservation of 18 per cent for each category of Service and as he was the only successful scheduled caste candidate he should have been appointed to any of the services under Group 'a' even though his position was 105th in the list of successful candidates. This contention, requires a careful examination of the various provisions of the orissa Administrative Services Class II (Recruitment) Rules, 1959 (hereinafter referred to as the Rules) and of the Regulations.

(2.) RULE 4 relates to method of recruitment. Clause (a) thereof prescribes direct recruitment by competitive examination. Rule 6 provides that recruitment to the service shall, subject to the provisions of the Rules, be in accordance with such regulations as the State Government may, after consultation with the Service commission, make in this behalf. Such regulations, in the case of direct recruitment, shall inter alia provide for reservation of seats for scheduled castes and scheduled tribes in accordance with orders issued by the State Government from time to time. Regulation 3 deals with holding of examinations. It runs thus :-"3. Holding of examination.-- (1) A combined competitive examination shall be conducted by the Commission having regard to the likely number of vacancies each year, in the manner prescribed in Schedule I for direct recruitment to the Services mentioned in Groups A and B below :--Group A, (i) The Orissa Administrative Service, Class II (ii) The Orissa Finance Service (Senior Branch) (iii) The Orissa Police Service Group B. (i) The Orissa Subordinate Administrative Service (ii) The Orissa Finance Service (Junior Branch) (2 ). The dates on which and the places at which the examination shall be held, shall be fixed by the Commission. " it will thus be seen that by virtue of Regulation 3, a combined competitive examination shall be conducted by the Public Service Commission, after taking into account the total number of anticipated vacancies, both in Groups A and B. Though the status and scales of pay of the Services in Groups A and B essentially differ, still one combined examination is held for both the classes of services. As would be explained hereafter this is based on the simple reason that persons higher in the list would be selected for Group A and the remaining persons lower in the list would be appointed to the Services under Group B according to the vacancies.

(3.) THE other relevant regulations are 7 to 10. They may be extracted in full :