In a historic judgment, the Supreme Court has fined Gulbarga University and one of its recruits Ganapath Singh for irregularities in the recruitment process.
The SC directed them to pay Rs 50,000 to the complainant Shivanand who was not appointed to the post of MCA lecturer despite having better credentials than Singh. A division bench of the Supreme Court comprising Justice Chandramauli and Justice Kurian Joseph pronounced the judgment on November 1.
On May 22, 1998, Gulbarga University issued a notification inviting applications for various posts including that of MCA lecturer. The minimum qualification for the post is 55 per cent of marks or an equivalent grade at the masters level in a relevant subject. Shivanand and Singh were among those who applied for the post. Shivanand is an MCA graduate while Singh holds an M Sc degree.
The university constituted a board of appointment comprising one professor each from Pune University, Bombay University and Kuvempu University for selecting suitable candidates. The board interviewed the candidates and recommended the appointment of Ganapath Singh, following which he was made assistant professor. An aggrieved Shivanand challenged this at the High Court. After a single bench upheld the university’s decision, he approached the High Courts’ division bench. In November 2009, the bench set aside the previous decision and quashed Singh’s appointment.
Following this, the university appealed to the Supreme Court. The defendants claimed that Singh’s appointment was approved by two expert bodies - the board of appointment and the university syndicate. However, the SC bench stated that it was aghast to see that when a candidate possessing an MCA had applied, a less qualified person was chosen.The bench said a person who is relatively less qualified cannot be appointed no matter how many recommendations. The bench directed the university to set aside Singh’s appointment and reconsider the writ petitioner’s and all other candidates’ applications according to the law.
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