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2022 DIGILAW 111 (PAT)

Ravi Raj, S/o. Shambhu Prasad Gupta v. State of Bihar through the Principal Secretary, General Administration Department, Govt. of Bihar, Patna

2022-02-22

MOHIT KUMAR SHAH, RAJAN GUPTA

body2022
JUDGMENT : Rajan Gupta, J. The present appeal is directed against the order dated 20.10.2020 passed by a learned Single Judge of this Court in CWJC No. 8379 of 2020 whereby and whereunder the petitioners’ counsel has been granted liberty, as sought, for approaching the Respondent No. 1 for redressal of grievances by making a detailed representation. 2. The brief facts of the present case are that the Bihar Administrative Reform Mission Society had made contractual selection on the post of Executive Assistant and had prepared a panel regarding the same in each district of the State of Bihar, whereafter applications were invited in the year 2018 for preparation of panel in the district of East Champaran. Panel is stated to have been prepared and from the same, appointments were also made on the existing vacancies, however, some applicants including the appellants herein remained wait listed. Subsequently, the Bihar Administrative Reforms Mission Society decided to select such applicants, who were highly qualified, hence, resolved to get panel prepared from the Bihar State Electronics Development Corporation Ltd. (BELTRON), whereafter BELTRON was instructed to conduct exam and prepare a fresh panel. 3. The appellants herein had then filed the writ petition in question i.e. CWJC No. 8379 of 2020 for setting aside the order dated 31.7.2019, issued by the Bihar Prashanik Sudhar Mission Society whereby and whereunder it has been directed that the vacancies will, henceforth, be filled up by requisitioning the same from the Bihar State Electronics Development Corporation Ltd. (BELTRON). The writ petitioners had further prayed for directing the respondents to fill up the vacancies of the post of Executive Assistant (Contractual) from the panel, which was prepared earlier by the District Selection Committee. 4. The writ petitioners had further prayed for directing the respondents to fill up the vacancies of the post of Executive Assistant (Contractual) from the panel, which was prepared earlier by the District Selection Committee. 4. The learned Senior Counsel for the petitioners, Sri Sanjay Singh, has though contended that the respondents could not have changed the recruitment process without exhausting the panel, which had been prepared earlier but upon a query being put to him as to whether the principles of estoppel, waiver and acquiescence would apply in the present case, in view of the fact that before the writ court, the learned counsel for the writ petitioners had himself sought liberty on behalf of the writ petitioners to approach the Respondent No. 1 by making a detailed representation with regard to their claims, which were accepted by the learned Single Judge and order was passed accordingly, the learned Senior Counsel for the Appellants is at a loss how to explain the unexplainable. In fact no answer is forthcoming. 5. This Court further finds that after the writ petition had stood disposed off by the impugned order dated 20.12.2020, all the 30 writ petitioners / appellants herein had filed a joint application before the Principal Secretary, General Administration Department, Government of Bihar on 6.11.2020, whereafter, notices were issued to them to appear before the Principal Secretary concerned on 19.1.2021 and then, a report was also sought from the District Magistrate, East Champaran with respect to the status of recruitment against the panel as also regarding the status of 30 applicants/ writ petitioners and it was found that one of the appellant, namely, Meraj Ahmad (appellant no. 21 herein) has already been recruited under the interim arrangement while others being lower in the merit list, have not been recruited. Thereafter, the writ petitioners were heard and then the Principal Secretary, General Administration Department, Government of Bihar, Patna has disposed off the joint application / representation of the appellants herein vide order dated 15.02.2021. Thus, it is apparent that the order impugned dated 20.10.2020 has already been acted upon both by the appellants as also the respondents herein and has thus stood implemented. Thus, it is apparent that the order impugned dated 20.10.2020 has already been acted upon both by the appellants as also the respondents herein and has thus stood implemented. In fact, the learned Senior Counsel for the appellants has also failed to point out any infirmity in the impugned order dated 20.10.2020 and in fact, we also find that there can be none, for the reason that it was the Counsel for the writ petitioners who had sought liberty to approach the Respondent No. 1 with regard to their claims by making a detailed representation, which the learned Single Judge has granted by the impugned order dated 20.10.2020. 6. At this juncture, we had granted option to the learned Senior Counsel for the Appellants to either take recourse to filing a review petition or assail the aforesaid order dated 15.02.2021, passed by the Principal Secretary, General Administration Department, Government of Bihar, Patna, but the learned Senior Counsel for the Appellants is adamant to prosecute the present appeal and has instead submitted that this Court may pass an order on merits including that of dismissing the appeal. 7. We have heard the learned Senior Counsel for the parties, perused the materials on record and considered the facts and circumstances of the case and we find from the aforesaid discussion that the present appeal is vexatious inasmuch as the appellants herein are estopped from filing an appeal against the impugned order dated 20.10.2020 in view of the principles of estoppel, waiver and acquiescence, for the reason that not only they had thought it proper not to pursue the writ petition but avail the alternative remedy of approaching the Respondent No. 1 by making a detailed representation but they have also availed the said remedy by filing appropriate detailed representation before the Principal Secretary, General Administration Department, Government of Bihar, Patna, which has also been duly considered and disposed off by an order dated 15.02.2021, however the same has not yet been challenged. In such view of the matter, we neither find any error nor any infirmity in the impugned order dated 20.10.2020 passed by the learned Single Judge in CWJC No. 8379 of 2020, nor can any infirmity be envisaged upon a bare reading of the impugned order dated 20.10.2020, which has been passed upon a request made by the Counsel for the writ petitioners, in similar terms, hence, the present appeal is devoid of any merit warranting any interference. 8. Under the circumstances, we find that the present appeal is not only sans merit but also frivolous and vexatious inasmuch as procrastination of litigation in this manner amounts to deceit and moreover, frivolous litigation clogs the wheels of justice making it difficult for the courts to provide speedy justice to the genuine litigants. 9. Accordingly, the Appeal stands dismissed with a cost of Rs. 30,000/- to be deposited by the appellants with the Patna High Court Legal Services Committee.