JUDGEMENT :

M. G. SEWLIKAR, J.

1. Rule. Rule made returnable forthwith. With the consent of the parties taken up for final hearing.

2. In this Writ Petition, the petitioners are seeking declaration under Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution of India that the entire selection process pursuant to the advertisement dated 5th March, 2019 including short-listing of the candidates and their consequential appointments are illegal and bad in law and for setting aside these appointments with further directions to Respondent Nos.1 & 2 to conduct and complete the enquiry under Section 79A of the Maharashtra Co-operative Societies Act, 1960.

3. The facts in a nutshell can be stated thus :

Respondent No.1 is the State of Maharashtra. Respondent No.2 is the Commissioner for Co-operation & Registrar, Co-operative Societies, Maharashtra State. Respondent No.3 is the District Deputy Registrar, Co-operative Societies (DDR), Sangli, who has the power of superintendence over Respondent No.4 Bank. Respondent No.4 is a Co-operative Bank registered under the provisions of the Maharashtra Co-operative Societies Act, 1960.

4. The allegations made by the petitioners are that on 5th March, 2019, an advertisement for recruitment of 400 posts of Junior Clerk was published in “Daily Sakal”. The conducting of the examination and selection of candidates was outsourced to respondent No.5 Maharashtra Institute of Hardware & Software Technology Private Limited, Amravati (MIHST Pvt. Ltd.). The petitioners also applied for the post of Junior Clerk. Accordingly examination was conducted by MIHST Pvt. Ltd. on 14th September, 2019 and 15th September, 2019. The said examination was conducted on line in two parts. First part of the examination was held on 14th September, 2019 and second part was held on 15th September, 2019. 5609 candidates had appeared for the said online examination. On 26th October, 2019, MIHST Pvt. Ltd. declared the result of the said on-line examination.

5. According to the petitioners, 1251 candidates were declared qualified for the interview. The interview was conducted between 30th October, 2019 and 11th November, 2019 in the office of respondent No.4 Bank. Final result was declared on 18th November, 2019. According to the petitioners, there were several illegalities in the conduct of examination and interview. Therefore, the petitioners raised their grievance before the District Collector, Sangli. It was their primary contention that the recruitment process was carried out in violation of the guidelines issued by respondent No.1. For enquiring into the allegations made by the petitioners, the DDR (respondent No. 3) was appointed as an enquiry officer. The DDR submitted his report to the District Collector, Sangli on 31st December, 2019. According to the DDR the recruitment process was conducted in accordance with the guidelines. The petitioners have, therefore, filed this Writ Petition seeking redressal of their grievances.

6. Respondent No.5 MIHST Pvt. Ltd. filed its reply on 23rd March, 2022. Respondent No.5 admitted that the job of conducting examination was outsourced to it by respondent No.4 Bank. It has contended that examination was conducted on 14th September, 2019 and 15th September, 2019 in accordance with the existing guidelines. It has, therefore, prayed for the dismissal of the Petition.

7. The petitioners filed a rejoinder on 29th March, 2022. It is contended that the candidate, namely, Dipali Jagannathrao Mane (Roll No.501577) was declared ineligible as she had secured 75 marks. However, she was called for the interview and was not only selected for the post of Junior Assistant but also was confirmed. This sole instance itself is indicative of the fact that the selection process smacks of malafide.

8. We have heard learned Counsel Shri Vaibhav Ugle for the petitioners, Smt. Kavita Solunke, AGP for respondent Nos.1 to 3, Shri Umesh Mankapure for respondent No.4 and Shri Abhijit Desai for respondent No.5.

9. Learned Counsel Shri Ugle fo