Invalid Selection Committee lacking personal DG ICAR presence renders Vice-Chancellor appointment unlawful, but unchallenged tenure completion permits valid extension under S.24(3) proviso as continuation till successor appointed.

JUDGMENT :

SANDEEP SHARMA, J.

1. By way of present petition filed under Art. 226 of the Constitution of India, the petitioner has prayed for following main reliefs:

“(i) That an appropriate writ, order or directions may kindly be issued, thereby directing the respondent No.2 not to grant any extension to respondent No.4, whose initial appointment itself was unlawful and was in contravention of Section 24 of The Himachal Pradesh University of Agriculture, Horticulture and Forestry Act, 1986, in the interest of law and justice.

(ii) That an appropriate writ, order or directions may kindly be issued thereby directing respondent No.2 to appoint senior most faculty/teacher of the University to carry out the duties of the Vice Chancellor till the time a Vice Chancellor is appointed strictly in consonance with the provisions of Section 24 of the Himachal Pradesh University of Agriculture, Horticulture and Forestry Act, 1986 to secure the ends of law and justice.”

2. Facts giving rise to filing of the petition at hand are that His Excellency the Governor, Himachal Pradesh, who happens to be the Chancellor of Dr. Y.S. Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni (hereinafter, ‘University’) constituted a Selection Committee vide Notification dated 14.2.2022 (Annexure P-1). Secretary to His Excellency the Governor, who otherwise was nominee of the Chancellor in the Selection Committee, invited applications for the post of Vice Chancellor of the University (Annexure P-1). AS many as fourteen candidates including respondent No.4 applied for the post in question. The Selection Committee, after having interviewed all the candidates recommended the name of respondent No.4 for appointment against the post of Vice Chancellor. In the afore background, respondent No.4-Rajeshwar Singh Chandel came to be appointed as Vice Chancellor on 6.5.2022, pursuant to which, he joined on 9.5.2022.

3. A few days before completion of tenure of respondent No.4 against the post of Vice-Chancellor, petitioner herein, who at present is working as Dean, College of Horticulture and Forestry, Neri, Hamirpur, District Hamirpur, Himachal Pradesh filed the present writ petition praying therein for the relief that since initial appointment of respondent No.4 was unlawful, being in contravention of S.24 of the Himachal Pradesh Universities of Agriculture, Horticulture and Forestry Act, 1986 (hereinafter ‘Act’), direction may be issued to respondent No.2 to not grant extension to respondent No.4 till the time, a new Vice-Chancellor is appointed or a senior most faculty/teacher of University is appointed as Vice-Chancellor in terms of S.24(5) of the Act.

4. Precisely, the grouse of the petitioner, as has been highlighted in the petition and further canvassed by Mr. Sanjeev Bhushan, learned senior counsel duly assisted by Mr. Rajesh Kumar, Advocate appearing for the petitioner is that since selection of respondent No.4 as Vice-Chancellor of University was made by a Selection Committee, which was not constituted strictly in terms of S.24 of the Act, he cannot be granted extension in terms of S.24(3) of the Act, rather a senior most faculty member is required to be appointed as a Vice-Chanc