IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA

Letters Patent Appeal No.1354 of 2018

In

Civil Writ Jurisdiction Case No.17604 of 2015

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Chanda Sinha Wife of Sajay Kumar, Resident of Village- Birnia, Police

Station- Bahadurganj, District- Kishanganj.

... ... Appellant/s

Versus

1.

The State Of Bihar and Ors

2.

The District Magistrate-cum-Collector, Kishanganj.

3.

The District Programme Officer, Kishanganj.

4.

The Child Development Project Officer, Bahadurganj, District- Kishanganj.

... ... Respondent/s

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Appearance :

For the Appellant/s

:

Mr. Abdul Wadood, Advocate

Mr. Bijay Kumar Pandey, Advocate

For the Respondent/s

:

Mr.Gyan Prakash Ojha -GA-7

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CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE P. B. BAJANTHRI

and

HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE RAJIV ROY

ORAL JUDGMENT

(Per: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE RAJIV ROY)

Date : 27-09-2022

The present appeal is arising out of the order

dated 07.08.2018 passed by the learned Single Judge in CWJC

17604 of 2015 by which the claim of the appellant-petitioner for

setting aside the order dated 24.09.2015 issued by the District

Magistrate-cum- Collector, Kishanganj (respondent no.2) in

Appeal Case No. 13/2012 affirming the order dated 18.01.2012

by the respondent no. 3- the District Programme Officer of

Kishanganj was affirmed.

2. The matrix of facts giving rise to the present

appeal is/are as follows:-

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3. Vide letter No. 43 dated 11.09.1997, the

appellant-petitioner was selected as an ‘Anganwadi Sevika’ by

the respondent number 4, the Child Development Project

Officer, Bahadurganj, Kishanganj (henceforth for short, “the

CDPO”), pursuant to the recommendation made by the Deputy

Development Commissioner vide letter no. 255 dated

03.09.1997, (as contained in Annexure-1 to the writ

application).

4. Vide letter No. 21 dated 07.01.2012, the

respondent no. 3, the District Programme Officer, Kishanganj

(henceforth for short, “the DPO”) issued show cause notice to

the appellant–petitioner with the allegation that upon visit to the

Aanganwadi Centre, it was found that :

(i) the centre was closed;

(ii) there was no children at the said Centre;

(iii) the Centre is running in her house;

(iv) the ‘Aanganwadi Sevika’ is her own

mother-in-law.

5. On 16.01.2012, the appellant-petitioner

appeared and filed show cause stating that due to severe cold

wave, the children who had assembled at Aanganwadi Centre at

10:00 A.M had left home early after taking their respective

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meals. It was further submitted that they were present and the

Center was opened. The further contention of appellant-

petitioner is that in absence of any Government building, her

house was being used as the Aanganwadi Centre and so far as

the allegation of Aanganwadi Sahayika being her mother-in-law

is concerned, she submitted that the said ‘Sahayika’ belongs to

another caste and is not her mother-in-law. The show cause

further narrated that the beneficiaries have submitted that the

Center is running smoothly.

6. However, ignoring her show cause and without

conducting any enquiry in the matter, the respondent no.3

terminated her service on 18.01.2012 beside terminating the

Anganwadi Sahayika too with direction for taking steps for

fresh selection.

7. The appellant- petitioner thereafter, preferred

appeal before the respondents-District Magistrate, Kishanganj

who vide order dated 24.09.2015 which was issued vide memo

no. 571 dated 28.09.2015 (in Appeal Case No. 13 of 2012)

chose not to interfere with the order of the respondents “the

DPO” and rejected her appeal.

8. Aggrieved by the said decisions of the

respondent DPO and the District Magistrate respectively, the

Patna High C