JAMMU: Justice Janak Raj Kotwal of J&K High Court Jammu Wing on Tuesday decided bunch of petitions regarding regularisation of Village Agriculture Extension Assistants and disposed off all the petitions along with issuing various directions.
According to the petition of 2007, State Government engaged all the unemployed Agriculture Graduates in the State as Rehbar-e-Zirat (ReZs). The Government has now formulated a policy for their regularization as Village Agriculture Extension Assistants. Dispute involved in seven writ petitions arose from the process of regularization.
Justice Kotwal observed that petitioners are Agriculture Graduates (B.Sc. Agriculture). They had completed their graduation in different years up to 2006 and like many others were unemployed. In 2006, State Government vide Cabinet decision No. 248/14 dated 23.10.2006 took a decision to engage all the Agriculture Graduates unemployed as on October, 2006 under the Rehbar-e-Zirat Scheme and pursuant to this decision Principal Secretary to Government, Agriculture Production Department, issued Government Order No. 20-Agri of 2007 dated 6.02.2007.
Justice Kotwal also observed that it had never been the policy nor it was decided that in the event of regularization of ReZs, basis of preparing the merit list or drawing seniority will be the year of obtaining eligibility qualification. Cabinet rather took a decision to regularize all the ReZs in three phases to be completed in three years and directed preparation of select list giving weightage to higher qualification on pro rata basis. No change of policy can be said to have been made. Doctrine of legitimate expectation on this score is not attracted.
State High Court further observed that arbitrariness or unfairness in giving weightage to higher qualification neither is apparent nor can be found. Petitioners’ contention in this regard is not tenable. Giving weightage to higher qualification in a recruitment process is well recognized and cannot be said to be arbitrary. It, however, needs to be noted that respondents have not addressed petitioners’ apprehension that some of them are about to cross the upper age limit and they may be relegated down if selection list is prepared by giving weightage to higher qualification and may thereby be deprived of the fruit under the regularization policy. This apprehension, however, is bit misconceived and farfetched for the reason that regularization policy has to apply to all the candidates engaged as ReZs for which equal number of posts has been created. Neither the policy nor Government orders dated 10.8.2011 and 28.11.2013 provide or even indicate that a candidates having crossed the maximum age prescribed for entry into Government service shall not be regularized. With these observations Court dismissed the petitions. JNF
