Rajendra Prasad vs State of U.P.and another

V.D. Chaturvedi, J.

Heard Sri U.K. Srivastava, learned counsel for the petitioner and Sri Sanjay Bhasin, learned Additional Chief Standing Counsel.

Sri U.K. Srivastava, learned counsel for the petitioner submits that in compliance of the Government Order dated 23.06.2008, an advertisement was issued for selection and appointment on the post of Safaikarmi for district Bahraich and thereafter the Chief Development Officer, Bahraich and the District Magistrate, Bahraich constituted five Selection Committee/Boards and Board No.1 was headed by the petitioner. He further submits that Sri Gulam Mohammad Khan, M.L.A., Bahujan Samaj Party, Kaiserganj, sent a list of 38 candidates to the petitioner for appointment on the post of Safaikarmi. A list of 13 candidates and thereafter a list of 107 candidates were also sent by Sri Balram Gautam, President Bahujan Samaj Party, Bahraich to the petitioner. Krishan Kumar Ojha, M.L.A. Fakarpur, Sri Ajay Kumar Gautam, President, Mehsi Vidhan Sabha, Bahraich also sent separate lists of candidate for their selection and appointment. He further submits that the five Boards, constituted by the Chief Development Officer and the District Magistrate, Bahraich, selected 1387 candidates for appointment on the post of Safaikarmis and thereafter the matter was placed before the Chief Development Officer and the District Magistrate, Bahraich, who granted approval on 10.09.2008 to the selection and accordingly the list was published in the newspaper on 12.09.2008 and 13.09.2008. He further submits that after the publication of successful candidates, the complaints were made by the politicians Sri Gulam Mohammad Khan, M.L.A., Bahujan Samaj Party, Kaiserganj,Sri Balram Gautam, President Bahujan Samaj Party, Bahraich, and others to the State Government. Sri Ashok Kumar Varma, Special Secretary, sent a letter to the Commissioner, Devipatan Mandal, Gonda, on 15.09.2008 apprising him about the complaint of the above mentioned leaders of Bahujan Samaj Party and it was upon the basis of such information about these complaints that the Commissioner, Devipatan Mandal, Gonda, was appointed as the Enquiry Officer who submitted his report on 19.09.2008 and thereafter by the order dated 22.09.2008 the selection was cancelled. He further submits that the cancellation order was challenged by Sri Neeraj Kumar Shukla and others in this Hon''ble Court and the cancellation order dated 22.09.2008 was stayed by this Hon''ble Court by the order dated 30.09.2008. He further submits that Charge No.1 mentioned in the suspension order relates to one candidate who was overage and his interview was held on 19.08.2008, on which date the petitioner was deputed to Lucknow to file counter affidavit and he was neither the Chairman nor a member of any Board on the said date. He further submits that Charge No.2 mentioned in the suspension order relates to one Sri Ram Pratap Singh, who belongs to Banjara caste which is Scheduled Tribe and he was interviewed by Board No.5 and not by the petitioner''s Board and Charge No.3 relates to 8 candidates who were selected by Board No.5 and not by the petitioner''s Board. He further submits that 3 ladies of one family were selected by the Board of which the petitioner was the Chairman. He further submits that all the ladies of O.B.C. were selected under 20% reservation for the ladies and the rest of such reserve vacancies were filled by male candidates. He further submits that the Commissioner, Devipatan Mandal, Gonda in his report has mentioned that there is no financial involvement in the matter and by the impugned order only the petitioner has been placed under suspension and till date no action has been taken against the other Chairmen of the Board or the members of the Board.

Sri Sanjay Bhasin, learned Additional Chief Standing Counsel appearing on behalf of the opposite parties submits that there is no illegality in the impugned suspension order which was passed after the enquiry was made by the Commissioner, Devipatan Mandal, Gonda. On the basis of the instructions, he further submits that the matter for suspension of the other officers who were involved in illegal selection has been proposed which is pending for approval.

We have considered the submissions made by the learned counsel for the parties and gone through the record.

It is admitted case of the parties that in the selection which was held between 18.08.2008 to 31.08.2008, the petitioner was the Chairman of one of the Boards constituted by the Chief Development Officer/District Magistrate, Bahraich. The petitioner in the instant writ petition has annexed a letter of Sri Gulam Mohammad Khan, M.L.A., Bahujan Samaj Party, Kaiserganj, Bahraich, who has sent a list of 38 candidates to the petitioner for appointment as Safaikarmi. A list containing 107 candidates and another list of 13 candidates were also sent by one Sri Balram Gautam, President Bahujan Samaj Party, Bahraich, to the petitioner for appointment on the post of Safaikarmi. The names were also forwarded by Sri Ajay Kumar Gautam, President, Mehsi Vidhan Sabha, Bahraich. The petitioner has alleged that Charge No.1 relates to one candidate who was overage and that person was interviewed by Board No.2 on 19.08.2008 when the petitioner was not at Bahraich. The petitioner has also alleged that Sri Ram Pratap Singh who belongs to Banjara caste was interviewed by Board No.5 and not by the petitioner''s Board. He has further alleged that 8 candidates were selected from one Village and they were also interviewed by Board No.5 of which the petitioner was not the Chairman. The petitioner has also alleged that he was placed under suspension as he could not succumb to the political pressure exerted by political leader of Bahujan Samaj Party, which is a ruling party in the State of U.P. It is expected from the politicians that they should not interfere in the process of selection made by the State Government. In the instant case, initially the recommendations were made by the members of the ruling party to the petitioner for appointment of their candidates on the post of Safaikarmi and after completion of the selection and declaration of the select list, the same persons, who earlier approached to the petitioner for favour in appointments, made separate complaints to the State Government. We have come across the cases where the political parties are pressurising the officers to do a particular thing in a particular manner. The public at large expects from the officers of the State Government that they will make fair selection in the matter of appointment. The documents which have been annexed by the petitioner along with the writ petition reveal that the political pressure was exerted by Sri Balram Gautam, President, Bahujan Samaj Party, Bahraich, Sri Gulam Mohammad Khan, M.L.A., Bahujan Samaj Party, Kaiserganj, Bahraich, Sri Balam Ram Saroj, President, Bahujan Samaj Party, Payagpur, Bahraich and Sri Ajay Kumar Gautam, President, Mehsi Vidhan Sabha, Bahraich. The public at large has much expectations from the political leaders and this responsibility of fairness is much more expected from the leaders of the ruling party. The petitioner has also annexed a copy of the order dated 30.09.2008 by which the order dated 22.09.2008, cancelling the selection, has been stayed by this Court.

The impugned suspension order dated 08.12.2008, a copy of which has been annexed as Annexure1 to the writ petition, shall remain stayed till further orders of this Court. However, it will be open for the opposite parties to shift the petitioner on the post of District Panchayat Raj Officer to any of the KAVAL towns of the State of U.P.