- (1.) Leave granted.
(2.) These appeals and the writ petition arise out of the common cause relating to recruitment to the post of Assistant Professors in various faculties in the appellant Post Graduate Institute, Chandigarh and admission into specialities and super-specialities. Advertisement No. 6/90 dated November 16, 1990 relates to recruitment to the post of Assistant Professor; out of 12 posts, 8 posts were reserved for Scheduled Castes (for short, 'Dalits') and 4 posts were reserved for Scheduled Tribes (for short, 'Tribes') in the pay scale of Rs. 3500-4500/-. Essential qualifications were prescribed for the said posts; there being no dispute, vis-a-vis qualifications, it is not necessary to elaborate them except to state that these are backlog vacancies. Through advertisement No. 15/90 dated November 25, 1990, the appellants had called for applications for appointment to the said posts and admission to Doctoral Courses and Ph. D. programme for the academic session starting from 1-1-1991 in which 6 posts were reserved for the Dalits and Tribes. The contesting respondents in these appeals (for short, the 'General candidates') and the Faculty Association challenged the advertisement for recruitment to the post of Assistant Professor and admission to Doctoral Courses and Ph. D. programme. Two learned single Judges in different judgments held that the post of Assistant Professor in various disciplines is single post cadre; reservation for the Dalits and Tribes would amount to 100% reservation; accordingly, it is unconstitutional. In respect of admission to the post of Doctoral Courses and Ph. D. programme, another learned single Judge held that the reservation in recruitment to the post of Doctoral Courses and Ph. D. programme undermines efficiency detrimental to excellence for which purpose the appellant-PGI is established and thereby it is unconstitutional. On appeal, the Division Bench in L. P. A. Nos. 787/92, 7827/92 and batch dismissed the appeals. Thus, these appeals by special leave.
(3.) It is not in dispute that the post of Assistant Professor in diverse disciplines, is single post cadre but carries the same scale of pay and grade in all disciplines. The Institute is of national importance and is established with the object to develop patterns of teaching in undergraduate and postgraduate medical education in all its branches so as to demonstrate a high standard of medical education, to bring together, in one place, educational facilities of the highest order, for the training of personnel in all important branches of health activity; to teach undergraduate and postgraduate sciences of modern medicine and other allied sciences, including physical and biological sciences and to provide facilities for research in the various branches of such sciences etc. Section 32 of the Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh, Act 1966 (51 of 1966) (for short, the 'Act') provides for grant of (i) the degree, diploma and other academic distinctions and titles by the Institute; (ii) the professorships, readerships, lecturership and other posts which may be instituted and persons who may be appointed to such professorships, readerships, lecturerships and other posts.;