STAFF REPORTER
GUWAHATI: A two-member bench of Gauhati High Court, comprising Chief Justice Sandeep Mehta and justice Kardak Ete, recently directed the Assam government’s Health and Family Welfare Department to appoint the 14 appellant ICU Technicians selected in 2020.
It should be mentioned here that, during the Covid-19 pandemic, the Government of Assam, Health and Family Welfare Department, created 800 posts of “Health Workers” including 128 posts of Laboratory Technicians (ICU Technical) to operate 32 newly created ICU units. An advertisement dated July 10, 2020 was issued by the Director of Health Services, Assam, for filling up 640 posts of Staff Nurse and 128 posts of Laboratory Technicians (ICU Technical).
Later on, this advertisement was cancelled and the numbers of posts were reduced from 128 to 108 by issuing a corrigendum. Altogether 99 candidates were selected in this selection process against the 108 posts advertised and a Select List dated September 12, 2020 was published. Out of the 99 selected candidates, only 40 candidates joined their respective posts and, as a result, 68 posts of ICU Technicians remained vacant. Thereafter, a screening-cum-skill test for 68 posts of ICU Technician was conducted through Zoom Interview by a duly constituted Selection Board.
The result of this selection process was published vide notice dated November 3, 2020 declaring 22 candidates to be selected. Out of the 22 selected candidates, 21 appeared for document verification, which included the appellants.
Since no appointment letters were issued, the appellants and other selected candidates submitted representations to the respondents, but to no avail. Whereupon, the writ petition [WP(C) 5667/2021] bearing a title “Nayanmoni Deka & 18 Others vs. State of Assam & Others” came to be filed on October 21, 2021.
The writ petition came to be disposed of by the judgment dated November 9, 2022, which concluded, “If the petitioners are not to be appointed as because the dedicated Covid-19 hospitals are no longer in existence and the petitioners are required to apply afresh against the advertisement that may be issued against the same posts in regular hospitals, we further provide that a due weightage be given to the petitioners in case they participate in such selection by taking note of their earlier attitude and approach to also be COVID warriors.” This judgment was assailed by 14 of the 19 original writ petitioners by way of the instant writ appeal (No.359/2023).
Senior counsel U. K. Nair, appearing for the appellants, stated that the posts against which the appellants were selected were permanent in nature and thus the appellants were lawfully selected against permanent sanctioned posts. The posts against which the appellants were selected are still lying vacant as they were neither re-advertised nor filled up by way of any subsequent advertisement. Moreover, since the writ petition was filed before expiry of validity of the Select List, the appellants have a right to seek a direction for appointment against the available vacant posts.
In reply, standing counsel of Health & Family Welfare Department, B. Gogoi, representing the respondents Principal Secretary to the Government of Assam, Health and Family Welfare Department, and The Director of Health Services, Government of Assam, opposed the submissions by the counsel for the appellants. He said that the selection of the appellants so made in the year 2020 was contingent in nature, based on an emergent situation, brought around by the Covid-19 pandemic, which no longer exists and, hence, the State Government cannot be compelled to offer appointment to the appellants.
The bench, after thoughtful consideration on the submissions advanced by the learned counsel for the parties, stated that the Select List in question was never cancelled and the posts, against which the appellants were selected, still remain vacant.
In light of the above, the bench ruled that the appellants deserve the relief sought for by them in the writ petition, i.e. to be appointed against the permanent posts of ICU Technicians as per the Select List dated November 3, 2020.
Accordingly, the court directed the official respondents to act upon the Select List so far as the appellants herein are concerned.
However, the appellants would have to undergo the skill test as may be prescribed by the competent authority before they can be appointed as ICU Technicians. The process, as directed above, shall be completed within a period of three months, the bench stated.
The impugned judgment dated November 9, 2022, passed by the Single Judge in WP(C) 5667/2022 was set aside accordingly.
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