- (1.) HEARD Shri Ashok Khare, Senior Advocate assisted by Smt. Arti Raje for the petitioners and learned Standing Counsel for the State respon dents.
(2.) LEARNED Standing Counsel has sought instructions and filed the counter affidavit. The rejoinder affidavit has also been filed today. The petitioners claim to be fully qualified and possess necessary qualifica tions prescribed by the University Grants Commission as well as qualifications mentioned in the Statutes of the concerned Universities for appointment as Lec turers in Post Graduate Colleges and even in the Universities. They have been awarded Ph. D. degrees and have also qualified National Eligibility Test. For a long period of time, the State Government did not requisition and that the U. P. State Public Service Commission has not filled up the vacancies for the post of Lecturers in the Government Degree and Post Graduate Colleges. The acute shortage of lecturers impelled the State Government to take a policy deci sion and to issue a Government Order dated 1. 2. 2005 to appoint Lecturers in the Government Post Graduate and Degree Colleges temporarily on contract basis. It was provided that the vacancies will be advertised in the newspapers specifically stating that they shall be filled up on contract, in the concerned subjects in the colleges. These selections were to be made taking into account the eligibility and qualifications by a Selection Committee headed by the Director, Higher Edu cation. The Committees were to consist of a Joint Director as Chairman and two officers representing the Scheduled Caste, and Other Backward caste as Mem bers. A procedure for selection, providing quality point marks and preparation of merit list, which included interviews, was provided in the Government Order. Para 4- A of the Government Order provides that initially the contract will be for one year and thereafter if the selected candidates are not available from the U. P. Public Service Commission, the contract may be extended after a break of 15 days for the second year and that thereafter it can be extended on the same conditions for the third year also after a break of 15 days. The period was not to extend beyond three years or the age of superannuation of the concerned lecturer, whichever is earlier.
(3.) THE petitioners were appointed and have completed the maximum period of three years as lecturers on contract basis in the concerned subjects. By means of this writ petition, the petitioners are challenging the advertise ment dated 16. 11. 2007, by which the State Government has invited applications for fresh appointment of lecturers on the vacant posts on contract basis upto 17. 12. 2007. The advertisement mentions only the subjects and vacancies giving the break up of the reservations. It does not give the names of the colleges in which these vacancies are available.;