R.Petchi Muthu Prakash v. The State Of Tamilnadu

IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT MADRAS

DATED: 22.03.2019

CORAM:

THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE K.K.SASIDHARAN AND THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE P.D.AUDIKESAVALU W.A.No.930 OF 2019 1 R.PETCHI MUTHU PRAKASH 2 P. BABY ...

appellants Vs 1 THE STATE OF TAMILNADU REP.BY ITS SECRETARY TO GOVERNMENT HIGHER EDUCATION DEPARTMENT , FORT ST.GEORGE, CHENNAI-9 2 THE TEACHERS RECRUITMENT Board Rep. by its Member Secretary 4th floor EVK Sampath Maligai DPI Campus College Road Chennai 6 3 E.DHANYLASHMI 4 JAYASUHDA 5 S.MEENA 6 R. VALLIAMMAL 7 KUJANI. T 8 M. THANIGAINATHAN 9 A. KALAIMANI 10 SARAVANAKUMAR R.

11 M. PRABHA 12 H. MADURAMBAL 13 KAYALVIZHI K.V.

14 G.T. ABINAYA 15 PRATHEBHA M.

16 V.R. MONIKASRI 17 R.VIKRAM 18 S. SAKTHIVELAN 19 N. KARTHICK VENKATESH 20 VANNIA RAJ M.

21 S. DINESH 22 M.AM. MANNAR THIPPU SULTHAN 23 M.M. MOHAMED LIYAKATHIALI KHAN

24 VIGNESH K.

25 B. SIVAGANTH 26 M. GANESH KUMAR 27 A. ARUN PRASANTH 28 R. SINGARAVELAN 29 S. LINGESHWARAN 30 M. THANIGAIVEL 31 S. CHANDRU 32 S. NAFEESA FARHANA 33 M. GUNA 34 A. ABDUL MUTHALIF 35 S. ATHIKESAVAN 36 M. MAGESH 37 R. IYAPPAN 38 G. TAMIZHARASAN 39 G BALAMURUGAN 40 K. MAREESWARI 41 C. ARVINTH 42 R. VIJAYARAJ 43 R. RAHUL 44 A DARWIN ANTHONY SAHAYA VIVEK 45 A. KAMESH 46 R. SAKTHIVEL 47 G. UMA SHANKAR 48 P. SHANTHI DEVI 49 S. HEMALATHA 50 S. SUMATHI 51 V ANNAPOORANI 52 C. SARASWATHY 53 S. KALAIMARAN 54 A. NIRMALA 55 S. NANTHAKUMAR 56 J. JEYASHREE 57 G. KARTHI 58 N. BHARATHI PRIYA 59 V. SUBASH CHANDRU 60 K. LENIN 61 M. HEMAVATHI 62 R. ISWARYA 63 M. SENGUTTUVAN 64 R. BASKAR 65 R. RAJESH 66 R. SAVITHA 67 S. SUGANYA LILIAN 68 G.A. LOURDU RAJ 69 S. SIVAGAMI 70 J. VIDIYAL MURASU 71 K. POORNACHANDRAN 72 O. PRASANNA KUMAR 73 V. KRISHNAMURTHY

74 H. AMBIKA 75 K. ARCHANA 76 S.KARTHIGA 77 M. THAHASEEN FATHIMA 78 R. LALIDAMBIGAI 79 P. SIRANJEEVI 80 S. DHAS VINO 81 S. ASHOK KUMAR 82 P. EZHILARASU 83 G. DEEPIKA 84 S. MANOJ 85 V.M. RUPILAA 86 R. ROHINIDEVI 87 R. PREETHA 88 S. ANITHA 89 K. KRISHNAKUMARI 90 S. SUBASINI 91 K. SUJITHA 92 M. SARAVANAN 93 A. SHIVARANJAJI 94 M.N. RAJAPRABHA 95 T. SUDHAKAR 96 C. ARIVAZHAGAN 97 M. SIVAKUMAR 98 G. SATHISH KUMAR 99 M. MANI 100 R. VIJAYAKUMAR 101 M. KARTHIKEYAN 102 S. BHUVANESWARI 103 R. RAJALAKSHMI 104 K. SANGEETHA 105 PRABHAVATHI 106 P. KARTHIKA 107 S. SOUNDHARAM 108 S. SATHISH 109 B. CHITRA 110 M. SIVAGAMI ...

Respondents Appeal filed against the order passed by this Court dated 11/04/2018 in WP No.4155/2018.

PRAYER IN W.P.No.No.4155 of 2018:- Writ Petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, praying to call for the records relating to the Press News of the 2nd respondent dt 9.2.2018 cancelling the direct recruitment for the post of Lecturers in the Government Polytechnic Colleges Notified in Advertisement No.6/2017 dt 28.07.2017 to quash the same and for a consequential direction directing the respondents to proceed with the selection as per the Advertisement No.6/2017 in whose case there is no mistake

and by conducting re-certificate verification for all those successful candidates only based on the marks given in the OMRs (Optical Mark Recognition) uploaded by the 2nd respondent and issue appointment orders and issue consequential orders. For appellant : Mr.V.Govardhan for Mr.Balan Haridas For Respondents : Mr.K.Karthikeyan, Government Advocate

J U D G M E N T

(made by K.K.SASIDHARAN, J.) The challenge in this intra court appeal is to the order passed by the learned Single Judge dismissing the Writ Petition filed by the appellants challenging the notification issued by the Teacher's Recruitment Board cancelling the recruitment of lecturers in Government Polytechnic Colleges on account of the act of tampering with the scanned copies of OMR Sheets relating to 196 candidates.

2. The Teachers Recruitment Board cancelled the competitive examination conducted for appointment to the post of Lecturers in various disciplines in the Government Polytechnic Colleges across the State for the year 2017-2018 on account of certain mal-practices committed by the outsourcing agency, entrusted with the work of evaluation, by using the scanned images of the OMR Sheets, notwithstanding the fact that the OMR sheets in original in the safe custody of the Board were intact and tampering took place only with regard to 196 scanned images of the OMR Sheets.

3. The learned single Judge at the Madurai Bench of this court allowed the writ petitions filed by the aggrieved candidates and set aside the notification cancelling the examination with a clear finding that it is possible to segregate the tainted candidates from the non-tainted. However, similar writ petitions were dismissed by another learned single Judge of the Principal Bench subsequently, even after taking cognizance of the judgment rendered by the co-ordinate Bench at Madurai on the very same issue.

4. The connected appeals came up for consideration before this Court in W.A Nos.2002, 1255, 1392, 1393, 1432, 1447, 1665, 1739 of 2018, 683 of 2019. The writ appeals were allowed by judgment dated 7th March 2019. The appeals filed by the Teacher's Recruitment Board were dismissed.

5. We extract the following paragraphs of the common judgment dated 7 March 2019 which would give an idea with regard to the nature of disposal:-

33. We confirm the order passed by the learned single Judge at the Madurai Bench.

We set aside the order passed by the learned single Judge of the Principal Bench in W.P.No.Nos.3287 of 2018 and etc., batch. We quash the notification issued by the Teacher's Recruitment Board pursuant to the decision taken on 8 February 2018 for canceling the examination conducted on 16 September 2017 on the basis of the notification No.06/17 dated 28 July 2017.

34. We direct the Board to reject the candidature of 196 candidates who were accused of tampering with the scanned images of the OMR Sheets and take out the remaining OMR Sheets in original of the non-tainted candidates and proceed further with the selection process. The entire exercise relating to selection, including the issuance of orders of appointment by the Government, should be completed by 30 April 2019.

35. In the upshot, we allow the intra court appeals in W.A.Nos.2002, 1255, 1392, 1393, 1432, 1447, 1665, 1739 of 2018, 683 of 2019 and dismiss the appeals filed by the Teacher's Recruitment Board in W.A(MD) Nos.751 to 753 of 2018. No costs.

Consequently, connected miscellaneous petitions are closed.

6. Since this Court has already quashed the notification issued by the Teacher's Recruitment Board cancelling the recruitment, there is no need for a further adjudication of the matter at the instance of the appellants.

7. The intra court appeal is disposed of in terms of the judgment dated 7th March 2019 in W.A Nos.2002, 1255, 1392, 1393, 1432, 1447, 1665, 1739 of 2018, 683 of 2019. No costs. Sd/- Assistant Registrar(CS III) //True Copy// Sub Assistant Registrar

tar To

1. The Secretary to Government, Higher Education Department, Fort St.George, Chennai-9

2. The Member Secretary Teacher's Recruitment Board, 4th floor, EVK Sampath Maligai DPI Campus College Road Chennai 6.

+1 cc to The Government Pleader, Sr.No. 28581 W.A.No.930 OF 2019 PPA(CO) CSL/13.05.2019