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2024 Supreme(Online)(CAT) 4802

CENTRAL ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL
Om Prakash VII, Member-J, Mohan Pyare, Member-A
Mahendra Kumar Pal – Appellant
Versus
Union of India through General Manager, North Central Railway, Allahabad – Respondent
ORIGINAL APPLICATION NO. 1469 OF 2016



Advocates:
For the Appellants/Petitioners: Sri Vinod Kumar
For the Respondents: Sri Vimal Kumar Rai

Post-computer evaluation of OMR sheet, manual re-scrutiny alleging erasure is illegal; multiple markings warrant 1/3rd mark deduction, not candidature cancellation.

Headnote:(A) Service Law - Recruitment Process - OMR Sheet Evaluation - Group ‘D’ posts recruitment - Applicant cleared written exam, PET, medical, and document verification but result withheld - Respondents rejected candidature post-computer evaluation alleging erasure on OMR sheet bubbles (questions 82, 94, 99) contrary to instructions 5, 10, 13 - Tribunal held no evidence of tampering by applicant as OMR evaluated by computer and success declared; manual re-evaluation illegal; at most, apply instruction 11 for multiple/wrong answers by deducting 1/3rd marks - Impugned rejection order quashed; result declaration and appointment directed with supernumerary post if needed. (Paras 7, 8, 10-16)

(B) Recruitment - Computerised Evaluation - Once OMR sheet scanned and evaluated by computer, no authority for manual re-evaluation to disqualify; erasure plea first raised post-contempt, not in initial RTI response - Multiple markings attract penalty under instructions, not candidature cancellation. (Paras 14, 15)

Facts of the case:
Applicant applied for Group ‘D’ posts under employment notice notifying 4692 vacancies. Cleared written exam (OMR evaluated), PET, medical, document verification. Final result declared 4470 selected, 161 vacant, applicant's result pending. RTI informed pending results soon; prior OA directed decision; contempt led to rejection order alleging OMR erasure.

Findings of Court:
No erasure by applicant; OMR tampering plea unacceptable as computer evaluated successfully; manual scrutiny post-computerisation illegal. Respondents to declare result per instruction 11, appoint if eligible within 4 months, create supernumerary post if required. No costs.

Issues: Whether erasure on OMR sheet justified candidature rejection after computer evaluation; validity of manual re-evaluation post-success in all stages.

Ratio Decidendi: Computer evaluation of OMR binding; no tampering if scanned successfully; multiple answers penalised by 1/3rd deduction, not disqualification; late erasure plea and manual scrutiny arbitrary.

Result: OA allowed.

Table of Content
1. recruitment process and applicant's progression until result withholding. (Para 2)
2. respondents allege omr tampering leading to candidature rejection. (Para 3)
3. applicant's arguments: no tampering, post-computer evaluation invalid. (Para 7)
4. respondents defend: erasures violate omr instructions justifying rejection. (Para 8)
5. precedents: multiple marks or minor errors warrant deduction, not disqualification. (Para 10 , 11 , 12 , 13)
6. no tampering proven; manual re-evaluation after computer scan illegal. (Para 14 , 15)
7. oa allowed; declare result and appoint applicant. (Para 16)

ORDER 

Per Justice Om Prakash VII, Member-J 

By means of this Original Application (OA), the applicant has sought the following relief(s):-

“(a) To issue an order or direction in the suitable nature directing the respondents to declare the result of the applicant under the OBC category and then provide him an appointment against the vacancies which notified under the Employment Notice No. 01/2010 dated 19.12.2010 alongwith all consequential benefits within specified period, which may be fixed by this Hon’ble Tribunal.

(b) To issue any order or direction to the respondents which the Hon’ble Tribunal may deem fit and proper in the facts and circumstances of the case

(c) To award the cost of the application to the applicant.”

2. The facts leading to this Original Application are that the Railway Recruitment Cell (RRC), North Central Railway (NCR), Allahabad issued the notification no. 1/2010 dated 19.12.2010 notifying 4692 Group ‘D’ posts in different categories by inviting the applications from the eligible candidates. In response to this, the applicant, being fully eligible for appointment on the post, in question, had applied for the Group ‘D’ post. After scrutiny, the call letters were issued to the eligible candidates including the applicant. The applicant appeared in the written examination wherein he was declared successful. The applicant was, thereafter, called for Physical test in which too the applicant was declared successful. The medical examination was also conducted by the authorities concerned in which also the applicant was declared successful. Thereafter, the applicant was called for documents verification wherein the applicant was appeared and get verified his educational certificates. The final result was declared by the respondent no.2 declaring 4470 candidates to be successful out of total notified vacancies of 4692 and as such 161 posts were remained vacant. According to the O.A., the result of the applicant was not declared.

2.1 Being aggrieved, the applicant sought information under Right to Information Act 2005 through application dated 12.8.2014, to which the authority concerned has informed the applicant stating therein that RRC is going to declare the remaining 161 pending result of the candidates very shortly. However, the respondents did not declare the result of pending candidates. Being dissatisfied, the applicant knocked the door of this Tribunal by filing O.A. No. 1296 of 2015, which came to be disposed of vide judgment and order dated 24.9.2015 directing the respondents to decide the claim of the applicant within a period of three months. When the order of this Tribunal was not complied with within the stipulated period of time, then he invoked contempt jurisdiction of this Tribunal by filing Contempt Petition. On receipt of contempt notice, the respondents have rejected the claim of the applicant vide order dated 29.9.2016, which is under challenge in the instant O.A.

3. Per-contra, the respondents have resisted the claim of the respondents by filing a detailed Counter Affidavit wherein they have stated that the RRC, NCR, Allahabad has advertised the notification vide EMP No. 01/2010 dated 19.12.2010 whereby 4692 Group ‘D’ post of different categories has been notified. Thereafter, call letters were issued to the eligible candidates including the applicant wherein the applicant has been declared successfu

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