Summary
A guest lecturer challenged rejection of his selection to teach Karm Kand. Neither the statutes nor the advertisement prescribed a specific postgraduate qualification for that subject. The Chancellor exceeded a remand concerning availability of selection experts and gathered adverse material without the lecturer’s participation. The Academic Council’s subsequent resolution and the selection record supported eligibility. The Court allowed the writ petition and directed regularisation of his services.
Issues
- Whether the Chancellor could reject the candidate’s qualifications by enlarging the limited remand.
- How eligibility should be assessed when no specific qualification for the subject had been prescribed.
Held
- The original objection concerned absence of Chancellor-nominated subject experts, not the candidate’s qualifications. The Chancellor’s subsequent inquiry into differences between Sanskrit and Karm Kand enlarged the remand and relied on material gathered behind the candidate’s back. (¶ 7-11)
- Where no specific qualification is prescribed, the authorities should settle what constitutes the relevant subject with expert assistance before commencing selection. Such a case differs from appointment of someone who fails to meet an expressly prescribed qualification. (¶ 10-15)
- No candidate holding a postgraduate degree in Karm Kand was available. The Selection Committee, including Sanskrit-department professors, found the appellant qualified for the post in that department; the Academic Council later accepted common academic qualifications with specialised Karm Kand experience. These circumstances supported his claim. (¶ 16-19)
- The appellant’s approximately sixteen years teaching the same subject, together with the original committee’s eligibility assessment and the Academic Council’s resolution, justified the direction to regularise his services in this case. (¶ 17-20)
Result
Appeal allowed without costs. The High Court order was set aside, the writ petition allowed as prayed, and the University directed to regularise the appellant’s services.