Fill up reserved posts, Gujarat told

AHMEDABAD, DEC 25: In a significant judgment, Justice Kundan Singh of Gujarat High Court has directed the State Government to fill up all...

AHMEDABAD, DEC 25: In a significant judgment, Justice Kundan Singh of Gujarat High Court has directed the State Government to fill up all backlog vacancies for Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe by a special recruitment, and effect pending promotions on roster system within six months.

The judgment came in a petition filed by L N Patel, an ST candidate working as Junior Inspector of Factories Class-II, seeking direction from the State Government to consider him for promotion to the post of Senior Inspector of Factories Class-I.

Allowing the petition, the court directed the State Government to immediately promote Patel as Senior Factories Inspector, with effect from July 14, 1988.

Advocate J V Bhairavia, counsel for the petitioner, submitted that the petitioner made four representations from 1982 to 1987, as no ST candidate was promoted to the post of Senior Factories Inspector Class-I. Then, the petitioner was informed in September 1987 that he was required to pass the departmental examinationas per Gujarat Factories Inspectorate Class-I Recruitment Rules, 1966.

However, it was submitted that there was no provision for the departmental examination under the Rules, adding that not a single candidate was promoted till 1976, and the reservation quota was being carried forward. The petitioner, being the senior-most ST candidate, ought to have been promoted as soon as he completed five years in 1985. But 12 candidates were promoted in the general category during 1976-87.

Also, the petitioner had passed the departmental examination in July 1988.Taking exception to the backlog, the court observed that qualified SC/ST candidates are not selected/promoted, because reserved vacancies are filled on the pretext that eligible candidates are not available.

8220;By this manipulation, reserved vacancies are dereserved,8221; the court observed.

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Observing that the rules laid down by the Supreme Court on constitutional policy guarantees the Fundamental Right of Reservation to SCs and STs in the public post, thecourt stated that the authorities should implement the executive/legislative/constitutional policy or principle in 8220;true spirit, honestly, and sincerely8221;. No direction should be issued to carry forward the vacancies reserved for the SC/ST, or to fill up reserved posts with open category candidates, the court observed.

The court criticised the fact that the Government required a report from the High Court to know the total number of employees working in the lower judiciary and the percentage of SC/ST candidates.

The court observed that representation of SC/ST candidates was inadequate for lower judiciary posts like civil judge J D, civil judge S D, magistrate first class, assistant judges, and Class III-IV posts.

The court observed that if this was the situation in just one of the departments, what would be the SC/St representation in other departments.