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IN THE HIGH COURT OF HIMACHAL PRADESH, SHIMLA.

CWPOA No.1003 of 2019 .

Decided on: 12thMarch, P2026 Romesh Chand Dhiman .......Petitioner Versus H State of H.P and another ...Respondents Coram o Hon’ble Mr.Justice Jiya Lal Bhardwaj, Judge.

Whether approved for reportin g?1 F F o o r r t t h h e e p re e s t p it o i n on de er n :

t s u:

M r r .

.A Vi n j u ay p K. V R e a r t m ta a n , , Adv A o d c v a o t c e a .

te General with Mr.Amit Kumar oChaudhary, Deputy Advocate General for respondent No.1.

C Mr.Vikrant Thakur, Advocate for respondent No.2.

Jiyha Lal Bhardwaj, Judge(Oral)

By way of present petition, the petitioner has prayed for the following substantive reliefs:-

H “i) That a writ in the nature of mandamus may kindly be issued and the petitioner be treated as OBC (NCL) candidate as per the OBC certificate produced by the p f E o e d r t u it c a io a p n t p i e o o r n i n . a t n m d e n th t e a n s a m H e e a o d f m th a e s p te e r t it i i n on e th r e b e D r e e p c a om rtm m e e n n t d e o d f ia) That a writ in the nature of mandamus may kindly be issued and the petitioner be treated as OBC (NCL) candidate as per the OBC certificate produced by the petitioner and the name of the petitioner be recommended for appointment as Headmaster in the Department of Education and annexure P-13 may be quashed and set aside.

1 Whether the reporters of Local Papers may be allowed to see the judgment? Yes.

In the alternative the petitioner prays that if no such vacancy presently exists and the selec.tion process is over then against the vacancy Pof post of headmasters (school cadre) next arising in Education Department keeping in view the examination process already unde.rtaken, the petitioner may be considered nexHt time to determine his entitlement for the post of Headmaster on the basis of merit position in the selection process already undertaken by the pe titioner.

ii) That a writ of mandamus moay kindly be issued directing the respondents to issue clear guidelines to the revenue author ities concerned at the field level.”

2. As per pleadings int the petition, the petitioner was appointed as TGT (Nuon-medical) and joined his duties on 9.10.2001 in Goovernment Middle School, Nangal Chowk, under comCplex Government Senior Secondary School Dada Siba in Tehsil Jaswan, District Kangra, H.P. The petitioner is posht graduate in three streams i.e. Mathematics, Sociology gand Economics.

i3. Respondent No.2-Commission advertised 212 posts of Headmasters (School Cadre) Class-II Non-Gazetted vide advertisement dated 23.09.2011 (Annexure P-1). As per this advertisement, the last date for receipt of the application was fixed as 22.10.2011 (08.11.2011 for remote areas). The petitioner being eligible also applied for the same through proper channel as in-service candidate, but under general category. As per condition in the advertisement, incomplete, defectively filled up, old, unsigned and zeroxed application forms will be rejected straightway and no subsequent correspondence will be entertained. As per condition NPo.2, the candidates claiming reservation must submit valid .certificates of concerned category in support of the claim; in case of invalid certificates, the applications wil l be rejected; the category once claimed shall not boe changed. Further, if the candidate belongs to OBC cate gory, he/she is required to produce OBC certificate, wrhich should not be more than two years old at the tiume of last date fixed for receipt of applications, scroeening test and viva-voce, along-with latest affidavit duCly attested by the authority authorized under the Indian O ath Act stating that his status as OBC has not changed and he/she is not excluded from the category of OBC on account of being covered under the creamy layer.

H i4. Admittedly, in the present case, as per averments in the petition, the petitioner belongs to OBC category, but for want of OBC category certificate, he had applied under the general