JUDGMENT :

1. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioners and Sri Gyan Prakash Ojha (GA 7) assisted by Sri Gopal Krishan, the learned counsel appearing for the respondent State.

2. The present writ petition has been filed for quashing the order dated 13.01.2020, passed by the District Magistrate, Khagaria, whereby and whereunder the petitioners have been removed from their services.

3. The brief facts of the case are that the petitioners had applied for being appointed as Executive Assistants and upon qualifying the requisite examination held for the said posts, their names had appeared in the provisional merit list of successful candidates at serial no. 17 and 20 respectively. It is the further case of the petitioners that in the light of an advertisement issued by the Directorate of Integrated Child Development Service (hereinafter referred to as "I.C.D.S."), Social Welfare Department, Government of Bihar, Patna for the purposes of making appointments on different posts in the various Districts of Bihar on contractual basis, the District Programme Officer (I.C.D.S.), Khagaria vide letter no. 533 dated 04.06.2013, had requisitioned six Executive Assistants from the District Establishment, whereafter the District Establishment vide letter dated 19.06.2013 had sent the names of six selected candidates to the District Programme Officer, Khagaria, which also included the name of the petitioners and from the said list, the petitioners were appointed on the post of Lower Division Clerk, whereupon appointment letter dated 28.06.2013 was issued to the petitioners by the District Programme Officer, Khagaria.

4. It is the case of the petitioners, as canvassed by the learned counsel for the petitioners, that the petitioners had been working under various District Programme Officers to their full satisfaction as also had been transferred/ deputed at various places by the order of the District Magistrate, Khagaria, however suddenly, the petitioners were removed from their services illegally and arbitrarily vide the impugned letter dated 13.01.2020, without any fault or wrong being committed by the petitioners or without any show cause notice being issued to them, much less any departmental proceedings being conducted qua them. Thus, the simple case of the petitioners is that since, no show cause notice has ever been issued to the petitioners, prior to termination of their services, vide the impugned order dated 13.01.2020, the same has resulted in violation of Principles of Natural Justice, hence the impugned order dated 13.01.2020 stands vitiated in the eyes of law.

5. The learned counsel for the petitioners has relied on a judgment reported in 2013 (2) PLJR 671 (Birendra Kumar and others v. The State of Bihar and others), rendered by the learned Division Bench of this Court to submit that without the appointment being a forged appointment, merely on the basis that the procedure has not been adequately followed while making appointments, the appointment cannot be held to be illegal.

The learned counsel for the petitioners has also relied on a judgment rendered by the learned Division Bench of this Courtin the case of Pramod Narayan Tiwary and others v. the State of Bihar and others, reported in 2017 (3) PLJR 778, paragraphs No. 23 to 25, whereof are reproduced herein below:-

"23. In the totality of the fact situation we are of the considered view that the order of termination is violative of principles of natural justice being post decisional hearing. It is also unsustainable in view of the fact that after seven long years the decision to cancel appointment was taken in the backdrop of the fact that in the case of others the Advocate General opined not to grant the same relaxation treating the case of the petitioners as precedent is unreasonable and arbitrary.

24. We also find substance in the submission of learned senior counsel for the appellant that the entire action of cancellation of appointment of the appellant and termination is founded