PANJIM: Every peon working in government or government-aided schools are entitled for promotion to the post of lower division clerk (LDC), the High Court ruled and struck down the direct appointment to the post.
Paresh Kodbal, working as a peon, had challenged the direct recruitment of one Tania Michelle Fernandes as a LDC at St Britto’s High School, Mapusa, on the sole ground that the post should have been filled in by promotion from Class IV employees, like peons and not by direct recruitment.
After making representations to the Director of Education and the ADEI, Paresh filed a writ petition. Arguing on behalf of the petitioner, Adv Shivraj Gaonkar, submitted that the post of LDC is a promotional post to be filled in by promotion from Group ‘D’ employees or Class IV employees like peons. He relied upon some of the court decisions in support of his contentions.
Adv John Lobo, who represented the school, stated that it was not a promotional post, and a post to be filled in by direct recruitment. The Director of Education even deputed his representative on the Selection Committee, showing that even the Director was satisfied that the post ought to be filled in by direct recruitment and not promotion. He prayed that the U-turn in the Director’s affidavit must be ignored and that the petition be dismissed.
Holding that the post of LDC was required to be filled in by promotion from out of the feeder cadre of Group ‘D’ employees or Class IV employees like peons,the court directed the school to convene a Departmental Promotion Committee (DPC) and consider the candidature of not only the petitioner but also other employees in the feeder cadre for the post of LDC, which was illegally filled in through direct recruitment in 2018.
If the DPC recommends the promotion of the petitioner or any other employee from the feeder cadre then such candidate must be promoted to the LDC notionally post effective from October 1, 2018. But the petitioner nor any recommended employee would not be entitled to arrears of pay or other financial benefits and would be considered for fixing pay scales and pensionary benefits. Also Fernandes’ appointment would stand quashed from the date of such actual promotion.
The court also made it clear that Fernandes’ appointment will not be affected if the petitioner and other feeder cadre employees are not found suitable or fit for promotion by the duly constituted DPC comprising, inter alia, a nominee of the Director of Education.
