Family pension should not be included in financial assessments for compassionate appointments, as it does not represent actual financial hardship.

JUDGMENT :

Rai Chattopadhyay, J.

1. An order dated April 24, 2018, of the District Inspector of Schools (Secondary Education), Murshidabad [herein after referred to as the “DI”] is under challenge in the instant writ petition. The petitioner has paid for the relief that by setting aside the said impugned order necessary directions be made to appoint him on compassionate ground.

2. The petitioner’s father was appointed as an assistant teacher on August 7, 1989 and was appointed as the headmaster of the school on September 16, 2011. He has breathed his last on January 21, 2013, during the tenure of his service. The said father of the petitioner was survived by his widow, a married daughter and the son that is the present petitioner. The mother of the petitioner made an application for compassionate appointment on April 27, 2013. She, by another representation and prayer dated April 7, 2015, had reiterated her prayer for grant of compassionate appointment in a Group-C post. The petitioner has further stated that the respondent authorities did not ultimately send any recommendation for compassionate appointment due to the reason of alleged non- fulfillment of conditions in Notification No. 697-ES/S/IS-18/08 dated July 9, 2009 [hereinafter referred to as “No.697”].

3. The petitioner’s prayer for grant of compassionate appointment was first rejected by the respondent No. 3, vide order dated May 31, 2016. Challenging the same order, the petitioner filed a writ petition before this court being. W.P.No. 3361 (w) of 2017. In the said writ petition the court had set aside the order of the respondent as impugned there in and directed the respondent to consider the entire matter afresh, by dint of its order dated December 19, 2017.

4. The resultant order is that dated April 24, 2018, which is impugned in the present petition. Mr. Saibal Acharyya learned advocate who appears for the writ petitioner has stated that the impugned order is manifestation of erroneous exercise of power by the said respondent/DI. That the same is baseless, irrational and arbitrary in nature. Mr. Acharyya has submitted that the West Bengal School Service Commission (Selection of Persons for Appointment to the Post of Non-Teaching Staff) Rules, 2009 vide notification No.697, has no manner of application in case of the present writ petitioner. It has been submitted further that, for the purpose of compassionate appointment, taking into account the amount of family pension received by the successor of the said deceased school teacher/headmaster, is only an unsustainable proposition as per the law settled. It has been submitted further that on the contrary, the petitioner would have been entitled for grant of compassionate appointment in terms of Schedule-V of the said Rules of 2009 [No.697]. It has been submitted further that the amount of family pension received by the successor of a deceased school teacher is not an absolute bar, for him/her in case of appointment on compassionate ground. It is submitted that the petitioner is otherwise qualified to be appointed as a Group-C employee and in the event of death of his predecessor/father during the tenure of his service, the writ petitioner would be entitled for being appointed on compassionate ground in terms of the existing rules, regulations and the law. He has challenged the impugned order addressing the same as unfair and illegal.

5. To butress his argument, Mr. Acharyya has specifically relied on the “Explanation”, provided in SCHEDULE V of the Rules of 2009 [No.697], and said that as per the statutory provision as above, the famil