Nishita Mhatre, J. - (1.) BY this writ application, the petitioner has challenged the decision of the West Bengal State Administrative Tribunal dated August 5, 2011 dismissing his original application. No relief has been granted to the petitioner on the ground that the police verification report was against him and therefore he was not entitled for appointment to the post of 'sweeper' in the Kolkata Police force. The tribunal, also, directed the petitioner to collect material under the Right to Information Act with respect to the police verification report and thereafter to challenge its veracity and legality before the tribunal. Aggrieved by this decision, the petitioner has approached this Court under Article 226 of the Constitution of India.
(2.) THE State Government issued an advertisement on 25th December 2008 for recruitment to the post of 'sweeper' with the Kolkata Police. THE petitioner applied for the post on 1st January 2009. He was selected after being interviewed on 17th August 2009. THE Joint Commissioner of Police Headquarters issued a letter to the petitioner on 2nd September 2009, informing him that he had been selected for appointment to the post of 'sweeper', subject to the submission of his verification roll. Accordingly, the petitioner submitted his verification roll on 29th September 2009. Clause 13 of the verification roll required the petitioner to answer whether he had been convicted by a court for any offence or charge-sheeted by the police in connection with any criminal proceeding. Particulars in this regard were sought from the candidate applying for appointment in the event he was so involved. The petitioner did not answer this clause. It appears that the authorities verified the antecedents of the petitioner and it was found that a First Information Report had been lodged against him on 16th January, 2009 under Section 379 read with Section 34 of the Indian penal Code in the Karimpur Police Station. A charge-sheet in this regard was submitted in court on July 16, 2009. As the petitioner did not receive any communication from the concerned department regarding his appointment, he preferred an application before the West Bengal State Administrative Tribunal which was registered as Original Application No. 1222 of 2010. This Original Application was decided ex parte. The Commissioner of Police, Kolkata, was directed to examine the record of the petitioner and, if there was nothing adverse regarding his antecedents, to consider his case for appointment, if he had been selected for the post of 'sweeper'. This exercise was to be completed within three months. Accordingly, on 21st January, 2011, the Commissioner of Police, Kolkata, examined the records and passed the following order:- 4 "In compliance with the order dated 09.12.2010 passed by Hon'ble State Administrative Tribunal in respect of O. A. No. 1222 of 2010 (Alok Sarkar ?Vs- State of West Bengal and Others), necessary consultation with the official record has been made and it appears that the petitioner Sri Alok Sarkar is unsuitable for appointment in connection with Police Verification of his character and antecedents."
(3.) AGGRIEVED by that decision, the petitioner approached the West Bengal Administrative Tribunal once again by preferring Original Application No. 298 of 2011. The impugned order has been passed in this original application. The principal contention raised by Mr. Tapas Kumar Bhattacharya, learned advocate appearing for the petitioner, is that the petitioner had been denied employment on the basis of an incorrect assessment of his antecedents. According to him, when the petitioner had applied for appointment there was no criminal case pending against him. It was only on 16th January, 2009, that a complaint was lodged against him in the Karimpur Police Station. He pointed out that the allegation against the petitioner in the complaint is that he had stolen bananas and bamboo. According to the learned advocate for the petitioner, such an offence, if at all it is proved, is not serious enough to deny the petitioner the post of 'sweeper'. 5;