Meritorious reserved category candidates shifted to general category retain entitlement to preferred district allotment as per reserved merit position to prevent disadvantage from higher performance.

JUDGMENT :

JYOTSNA REWAL DUA, J.

Petitioner emerged as meritorious candidate belonging to the reserved category. She had exercised option for appointment in districts as per her order of preference in accordance with law. Based upon her merit, respondents shifted the petitioner from reserved category to General category. Petitioner’s placement in the general category was not at higher pedestal. As a consequence thereof, the petitioner lost out on getting appointed in District Solan as per her preferred first option. It is against this background that the petitioner has instituted the present writ petition seeking directions to the respondents to allot her preferred district keeping in view her order of preference with all consequential benefits of seniority etc.

2. Heard learned counsel for the parties and considered the case file.

3. The case

3(i). Petitioner completed Junior Basic Trained (JBT) Teacher training and got her name registered in the concerned employment exchange. This was in view of provision existing in the Recruitment & Promotion Rules for the post of JBT Teacher for making batch-wise recruitment alongwith other modes of recruitment.

3(ii). Respondent-Education Department issued an office letter/notification on 11.10.2023 to all concerned Deputy Directors of Elementary Education in the State on the subject of filling up of vacant posts of JBTs, inter alia, on batch-wise basis. In terms of the said office letter/notification, total 1161 posts of JBT Teachers were notified to be filled-up district wise. 108 posts were meant to be filled up in District Solan, out of which, 37 were meant for General category and 21 for the candidates belonging to Scheduled Caste category. The candidates, who were eligible for the posts to be filled up on batch-wise basis, were to appear for counselling in their home districts. As per the terms & conditions of the aforesaid office letter, ‘the candidates shall be allotted District as per his/her rank in the overall merit list read with the order of preference of the candidates. The allotted District will be displayed on the website of DEE. Merely listing of name in the shortlist drawn at District level or overall merit list drawn at Directorate level does not confer any right to the candidate for posting. The appointment shall be made after verification of documents in support of the eligibility criteria. The draft of the appointment letter shall be uniform throughout the State and the specimen shall be shared by the Directorate shortly. The Principal/Headmaster concerned shall take the joining after verification of documents.’

The above was a categoric condition that the candidate was to be allotted the district as per his rank in the overall merit list read with the order of his preference.

3(iii). Petitioner being eligible for batch-wise recruitment as JBT Teacher, submitted her application as a Scheduled Caste category candidate. In her application form, she exercised her preference for districts in the following order:-

“1. Solan

2. Shimla

3. Sirmour

4. Bilaspur

5. Kangra

6. Una

7. Hamirpur

8. Mandi

9. Kullu

10. Chamba

11. Kinnaur

12. Lahaul & Spiti.”

3(iv). Petitioner was called for interview by the respondent-Department. The result of the interview was declared on 27.08.2024. Petitioner was declared successful and placed at merit rank 450 in the consolidated merit list. She, however, was not allotted her first preference of District Solan, rather, was allot