Cannot Direct State To Consider Degree Holders For Junior Engineer Posts When Recruitment Rules Say Only Diploma Holders Eligible: Bombay High Court

Acting Chief Justice S. V. Gangapurwala and Justice Sandeep V. Marne dismissed a writ petition filed by 610 Civil Engineering degree holders challenging the eligibility criteria.

“Merely because degree in Civil Engineering might ... a higher qualification than a diploma, this Court would not be in a position to interpret the provisions of Recruitment Rules and direct the State Government to consider candidates who are not eligible as per the Recruitment Rules,” the court said.

The Water Resources Department in 2019 advertised recruitment for posts of Junior Engineer (Civil) prescribing the eligibility criteria as diploma in Civil Engineering or equivalent qualification.

The petitioners challenged the eligibility criteria before the Maharashtra Administrative Tribunal. The tribunal dismissed their applications. The present petition was then filed against the tribunal judgment.

Advocate Neeta Karnik for the petitioners submitted that the degree holders are deemed to be included in the eligibility criteria. She relied on the recruitment rules for the promotional post of Sectional Engineer. Junior engineers who are degree holders are eligible to be promoted to post of Sectional Engineer.

She argued that it has to be inferred that degree holders are also eligible for being appointed as Junior Engineer, otherwise the eligibility criteria for Sectional Engineers would become redundant.

She also relied on government resolution dated September 9, 2021, prescribing the model recruitment rules providing that candidates having higher qualifications than minimum are also considered eligible. The post of Civil Engineering assistant can be filled up by degree holders and it is highly illogical if degree holders are excluded from the post of Junior Engineer which is the higher post, Karnik argued.

Senior Advocate Ram Apte with advocate Harshal Nahata for the State argued the words ‘degree in Civil Engineering’ are absent in the rules and court cannot read the same into the rules. Apte also said that the promotional post of Sectional Engineer has the eligibility criteria of degree holders as in the past there used to be recruitment of degree holders as Junior Engineers.

Rule 3 of the Public Works Department and Irrigation Department (Recruitment) Rules, 1998 provides the eligibility criteria for Junior Engineer. It includes the words ‘or any other qualification recognised as equivalent thereto’; the petitioners contended that in this expression the degree in Civil Engineering is included.

However, the court noted that the recruitment advertisement provided a list of equivalent qualifications and in that list, degree in Civil Engineering is not included.

The court referred to various government resolutions over the years and noted that in the past the state government used to recruit degree holders as Junior Engineers. The court also took note of a government resolution under which degree holder Junior Engineer were treated as Gazetted Officers from the dates of their appointments, and the diploma holders and non-diploma holders were conferred such status in a staggered manner on completion of requisite years of service.

"Thus, it can not be contended that the provisions of Rule 3(a) of the Recruitment Rules of Sectional Engineer would be rendered redundant if degree holders are held ineligible for being appointed as Junior Engineer. In fact, Rule 3(a) is included to cover cases of such Junior Engineers who were recruited in the past with qualifcation of degree in Civil Engineering. Therefore, reliance of Ms. Karnik on the Recruitment Rules of Sectional Engineers ... is misplaced and no inference can be drawn to the effect that the degree holders can be included in the eligibility criteria for direct recruitment on the post of Junior Engineer," it said.

The court noted that petitioners did not challenge the Recruitment Rules, 1998 for Junior Engineer before the Tribunal. Therefore, the court said that it cannot read something which is missing in the recruitment rules.

Relying on Apex Court Judgment in Zahoor Ahmed and ors versus Sheikh Imteyaz Ahmad and ors, the court refused to hold that degree in Civil Engineering is higher qualification than diploma.

“We are therefore unable to hold that degree in Civil Engineering is a higher qualification than diploma in the context of requirement under the recruitment rules,” it said.

Case no. – Writ Petition No. 8568 of 2022

Case Title – Milind Shantilal Rathod and Ors. v. State of Maharashtra and Anr.

Citation: 2023 LiveLaw (Bom) 66

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