- (1.) The petitioner was recruited as a Revenue Patwari on February 11, 1942, and was confirmed as such on July 6, 1944. He was appointed as officiating Kanungo with effect from April 26, 1948, and was confirmed as Mahal Kanungo with effect from May 11, 1966. He was promoted as Assistant Consolidation Officer with effect from March 31, 1959, and worked as such till September 30, 1965, on which date he was reverted as Kanungo Consolidation. He was again appointed as officiating Naib Tehsildar on ad hoc basis as a stop-gap arrangement with effect from December 10, 1965 which post he has been holding since then. He has already passed the departmental examination prescribed for the posts of Kanungos and Naib Tahsildars. The recruitment to the post of Naib Tahsildar is made under the Punjab Tehsildari Rules, 1932 . Rule 5 of the said rules, insofar as it is relevant, reads as under :- "5(1) No person shall be directly appointed to the service unless in the case of appointment to the post of :- (a) Tehsildar : he is a Graduate of a recognised University; (b) Naib Tahsildar : he has passed the first examination of a recognised University in Arts or Science; or the Diploma Examination of the Atchison College, Lahore, or the Senior Oxford or Senior Cambridge Local Examination. (2) x x x x (3) No person shall be appointed directly or by transfer to the Service unless he has been accepted as a candidate, in the case of Tahsildar by the Financial Commissioners and in the case of Naib Tahsildar by the Commissioner, under the conditions prescribed from time to time in the Standing Orders of the Financial Commissioners : Provided that in the case of Tahsildars the Local Government and in the case of Naib Tahsildars the Financial Commissioner may, in special circumstances to be recorded in writing, waive any of the provisions of this rule." Rule 6 provides that :- ".... the posts in the Service shall be filled in the case of Naib Tehsildars either by direct appointment or by transfer from amongst the officials employed in the Revenue, Irrigation, Consolidation, Special Assessment, Excise or Police establishments of the Division." The posts of Naib Tehsildars are filled in by direct recruitment and by transfer on 50:50 basis. The Commissioner, Jullundur Division, issued letters to the various Deputy Commissioners in the Division inviting names of the persons who were considered suitable for appointment as Naib Tehsildars on substantive basis. The petitioner's name was recommended by the Deputy Commissioner, Amritsar. Under the Service Rules, the competent authority for selecting persons for the posts of Naib Tehsildars is the Commissioner of the Division, but, in violation of that rule, a Selection Committee was constituted for the purpose of making selection for the posts of Naib Tahsildars. This Selection Committee consisted of the Commissioner, Jullundur Division, the Superintending Engineer B&R, Jullundur Division, and the Deputy Secretary Development, Government of Punjab, Chandigarh. This Committee, constituted by the State Government, interviewed various candidates and made the necessary selection. Thereafter, on April 5, 1972, the Commissioner, Jullundur Division, passed the following order :- "I have accepted the recommendations of the Departmental Selection Committee, on the basis of the result of the written competitive test coupled to the recruitment of 'A' Class Naib Tehsildars candidates and the enlistment of 'B' Class Tehsildar candidates on the authority-cum-merit basis. The following persons are accordingly accepted as 'A' Class/'B' Class Naib Tehsildar candidates of Jullundur Division in the following order of seniority :- S.No. In order of seniority Name/s/Shri Whether accepted as 'A' Class or 'B' Class Naib Tehsildar candidates. 1. x x x x x x x x x 73 x x x x x x x x x
(2.) It is not necessary to set out the names. Suffice it to say that the list consisted of 73 persons, although names against certain vacancies reserved for 'B' Class candidates were not mentioned. This list shows that alternately one 'A' Class and one 'B' Class candidate was recruited. The petitioner's name did not figure in the list. He, therefore, filed the present petition challenging the selection made by the Commissioner on the recommendations of the Departmental Selection Committee.
(3.) The Commissioner, Jullundur Division, has filed his affidavit by way of return to the writ petition. Respondent 5, one of the selected candidates, has also filed his affidavit, but the other respondents have not chosen to appear. Respondents 3 to 27 are the affected Naib Tehsildar 'B' Class candidates who have been selected by the Commissioner. The petitioner is not concerned with the selection of 'A' Class Naib Tehsildars and, therefore, he has not made them respondents to the writ petition. This order will not affect them and will affect only respondents 3 to 27 to this writ petition.;