The residence requirement for Lambardar appointment and the authority of the District Collector to make appointments without explicit reasons for differing with recommending authorities' report.

AJAI LAMBA, J. (Oral)

1. This petition has been filed praying for issuance of a writ in the nature of certiorari, quashing Order dated 28.1.2009 (Annexure P-2) passed by respondent No.2 i.e. Commissioner, Jalandhar Division, Jalandhar; and Order dated 27.1.2010 (Annexure P-4) passed by respondent No.1 i.e. Financial Commissioner (Appeals-II), Punjab.

2. Order dated 28.2.2008 (Annexure P-1) passed by Deputy Commissioner-cum-District Collector, Hoshiarpur, vide which petitioner had been appointed as Lambardar for village Talwandi Daddian, Tehsil Dasuya, District Hoshiarpur, has been set aside by the Commissioner vide Annexure P-2 while accepting the appeal filed by respondent No.4, Kuldip Singh. Order (Annexure P-2) passed by the Commissioner has been maintained/ upheld by the Financial Commissioner.

3. Comparative merit of the candidates is not in dispute. Petitioner is 39 years of age, matric pass, and is ordinarily & permanently residing in the village. Respondent No.4, Kuldip Singh is 43 years of age and 6th class pass, however, is serving at Dasuya as Helper in Warehousing Corporation. Other than that, private respondent is stated to have contributed towards LIC policies. Father of the private respondent was an Ex-serviceman.

4. Learned counsel for the petitioner contends that foremost consideration in such appointments should be that the candidate is residing in the same village. Respondent is residing at Dasuya where he is serving and therefore, would not be suitable for the post. In such circumstances, order (Annexure P-2) passed by the Commissioner and order (Annexure P-4) passed by the Financial Commissioner are not sustainable in law.

5. Learned counsel for respondent No.4 contends that the Department has given no objection certificate to the respondent to seek appointment as Lambardar of the village. It has further been contended that since Sub Tehsil is at Dasuya, therefore, most of the work is to be carried there. In such circumstances, orders passed by the Commissioner and Financial Commissioner are required to be upheld.

6. I have considered the rival contentions of the learned counsel.

7. Essentially, the impugned orders have been passed on the premise that Deputy Commissioner-cum-District Collector, while appointing the petitioner as Lambardar, has not given any reasons for differing with the recommendations made by the revenue authorities. Revenue authorities recommended the case of respondent No.4, Kuldip Singh, as Lambardar. The Financial Commissioner has upheld the order on the same premise viz. the name of Kuldip Sing was recommended by Naib Tehsildar and Sub Divisional Magistrate. District Collector has not given any reasons to differ with the recommendations of revenue officers.

8. In so far as, comparative merit is concerned, petitioner is younger and more educated, which aspect of the matter needs prime consideration. Respondent No.4, admittedly, is serving as Helper in Warehousing Corporation at Dasuya which is stated to be about 20 kilometres from the village.

9. This Court has considered the issue in Civil Writ Petition No.1395 of 2011 titled ‘Bhag Singh vs. Financial Commissioner, Appeals-II, Punjab & others’, decided on 25.1.2011. The following has been held in Para11 and 12:-

“11. I am, however, not convinced with the argument in so much as the petitioner is serving on a transferable post, though within the district. The issue of availability of Lambardar in the village is required to be considered in context of duties to be discharged by such functionary. Duties to be discharged by a headman/Lambardar are given out in Rule 20 of the Punjab Land Revenue Rules which when extracted, read as under:-

“20. Duties of headman.-In addition to the duties imposed upon headman by law for any purpose, a headman shall-

(i) collect by due date all land revenue and all sums, recoverable as land revenue from the estate, or sub division of an estate in which he holds office, and pay the same personally or by reve