Reassess the petitioner's ability for post: HC to JIPMER

Madras High Court has directed JIPMER, Puducherry, to constitute a standing selection Committee to reassess the one and only candidate's ability for the post of Assistant Professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, a post reserved for the SC Category.
"When a person who applies for public employment as per right conferred under Article 16 of the Constitution is called for interview, the department is duty bound to conduct it by duly constituted selection committee with all seriousness which can be inferred under the said Article,"a Division Bench comprising Justices N Paulvasanthakumar and R Mahadevan said.
The court was disposing a petition filed by Dr Anandraj who was not selected for the post.

The judges said a person attending the interview must be satisfied that his merits are being assessed objectively. Conducting it in a casual manner was not expected from the interview Committee and courts can interfere with it if facts are established in a given case, they said.
Anandraj contended he applied for the post and appeared for an interview on January 20, 2011, but did not figure in the selection list. He said he was fully qualified and the only one who applied for the SC Category post and attended the Interview. Though he tried to ascertain the reasons for non selection, there was no response.

When he sought to know the details through RTI, he was told that merely attending an interview was not a guarantee for selection to any post.

Anandraj then approached the CAT, which dismissed his application on the ground that his fundamental rights had not been violated. Hence he filed the present petition.
The bench said it was an admitted fact that as per the petitioner's submissions and JIPMER, he was the only candidate who applied for the post. The action of JIPMER and Standing Selection Committee members in not assessing his merit and ability was the reason for his non-Selection, it said.

The bench said when there is no minimum grade fixed in the rule for selection, not filling up the post reserved for SC was violation of Article 16(4) of the Constitution.
It also faulted constitution of the Committee, saying it is not in the terms of statutory rule
The bench directed that the petitioner be reassessed by a duly constituted Committee, in which Director General of Health Services is a member as required by a Ministry of Health and Family welfare Notification and to pass fresh orders in eight weeks.