IN THE KERALA ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL AT

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM
Present:

The Hon'ble Mr. V.Rajendran, Member

Dated this the 16th of October 2O19

OA-1789/2O17

Applicant(s):

Thulasi B Nair, aged 41 years, W/o Gopakumar.,,Residing at

Nandanam House, Kodungoor, Vazhoor. P.O, ,Kottayam,Kerala -
686504
Mobile - 9446196273

By Advs. MARUTHAMKUZHII SATHEESH KUMAR & SASIDHARAN

B

Respondent(s):

Kerala Public Service Commission,Represented by its Secretary,

Pattom Palace. P.O, Thiruvananthapuram-695004, Kerala -0

Standing Counsel Sri.S.Remesan for the respondent

S REMESAN [Standing Counsel For KPSC]

This Original Application having been finally heard on

16th of October 2O19, the Tribunal on the same day passed the
following:

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 V.RAJENDRAN, MEMBER
=========================================
OA. NO. 1789 OF 2017
==========================================
DATED THIS THE 16TH DAY OF OCTOBER 2019

ORDER

As per Annexure A1 Notification dated 15/11/2012, the

respondent Commission invited application for selection to the
post of Junior Instructor in various subjects in the Industrial
Training Department. The applicant who possesses a Bachelor
Degree in Science with optional subject ‘Food Science and
Quality Control’ main and Chemistry and Zoology subsidiaries
awarded by the Mahathma Gandhi University applied for the post
in Dairying which is notified as Category No.530/2012. As per
Annexure A4 letter the Commission asked the applicant to
produce an Equivalency Certificate to prove that her qualification
is equivalent to the notified qualification. She produced Annexure
A6 Certificate issued by the Kerala Veterinary and Animal
Sciences University (K-VASU for short) along with Annexure A5
representation dated 31/10/2015. After the OMR Test she was
included in the main list of Annexure A3 short list published on
4/2/2016. The certificates were verified by the Commission on
17/3/2016 and Annexure A7 verification certificate was issued to
the applicant.

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 2. However when the interview was scheduled to be held on
19/9/2017 the applicant found that she was not called for the
same. Finding no response to her Annexure A9 representation
the applicant filed this Original Application seeking directions to
accept her candidature. As directed by this Tribunal, the
applicant was allowed to participate in the selection process
provisionally. However when the ranked list was published on
30/10/2017, her result stands withheld as this Original
Application is pending.

3. In the reply statement the respondent has stated that the

applicant does not have the notified qualification and that she
did not produce any equivalency certificate or executive order to
show that her qualification is equivalent to the notified
qualification. Annexure A6 certificate produced by the applicant
was referred to the Academic Committee of the Commission and
the Committee suggested that the certificate is not sufficient to
hold that the Degree possessed by the applicant is equivalent to
the notified qualification. The suggestion of the Committee was
accepted by the Chairman of the Commission and it was decided
to reject the application of the applicant.

4. The applicant in her rejoinder reiterated her stand and also

produced Annexure A13 Government Order dated 4/7/2019
holding that B.Sc. (Food Science and Quality Control) of the
Mahathma Gandhi University in regular mode is equivalent to

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 Diploma in Dairy Sciences of K-VASU. She also produced
Annexure A14 certificate to show that she had actually worked as
a Guest Instructor in Dairying in the same Department

5. Sri. Maruthamkuzhi Satheeshkumar, the learned Counsel for

the applicant argued that the action of the PSC in having rejected
the application is highly illegal and the decision of the Academic
Committee which refused to accept Annexure A6 certificate is
perverse. He alleges that the refusal of the PSC to accept the
application even after Annexure A13 order of the Government is
arbitrary.

6. The qualification required for the post as notified in Annexure

A1 is pass in SSLC and a National Trade Certificate in the
concerned trade with three years experience after obtaining the
certificate, or National Apprenticeship Certificate in the
concerned trade with one year experience after obtaining the
certificate, or a Diploma in the concerned branch of Engineering
from a Government or Government recognised Polytechnic or its
equivalent. The applicant who has a B.Sc Degree in Food Science
and Quality Control of the M.G.University satisfies this
requirement. She produced Annexure A6 Certificate showing that
her degree is equivalent to the notified qualification and
sufficient for discharging the duties of Instructor (Dairying) in the
Industrial Training Department. It is also contended that the
refusal to accept her application even after the Government
declared equivalency in Annexure A13 is unjustifiable and

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 arbitrary.

7. Learned Standing Counsel for the Commission defends the

action of the Commission saying that the applicant failed to
produce equivalency certificate in time and that Annexure A6
certificate cannot be accepted as an equivalency certificate.
Annexure A6 was considered by the Academic Committee of the
Commission and they refused to accept the same. According to
the learned Counsel Annexure A6 certificate only says that the
Degree is ‘comparable’ and not that it is ‘equivalent’.

8. Applicant contends that the Commission seriously erred in not

accepting Annexure A6 as an equivalency certificate. He
contends that the meaning of the word ‘comparable’ is
‘equivalent’ and the decision of the Academic Committee is
perverse. In the Concise Oxford Dictionary, the meaning of the
word ‘Comparable’ is shown as ’able to be likened to another’,
‘similar’ and ‘of equivalent quality’. It appears that prima facie
the decision of the Academic Committee is erroneous and
therefore the rejection of the candidature of the applicant on the
ground that she was not having the required qualifications
cannot be supported.

9. Applicant had also approached the Government for an

equivalency certificate. As is seen from Annexure A10 order the
Kerala State Higher Education Council (KSHEC for short) is the

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 competent authority to decide on the question of equivalency or
recognition of the Academic programmes. When the Government
sought its view in the matter, the KSHEC as per Annexure A12
letter recommended the Government to declare equivalency.
Annexure A12 shows that it was after considering Annexure A6
certificate that the KSHEC arrived at the decision to declare the
equivalency. As the competent authority has understood
Annexure A6 certificate as accepting equivalency of the
qualification, the finding of the Commission is perverse.

10. It is also argued on behalf of the Commission that Annexure

A13 order dated 4/7/2017 cannot apply to the selections already
commenced and it would apply only to future selections. Relying
on para 17 of the General Conditions it is contended that proof
regarding the equivalency of the qualification must be produced
on or before the last date fixed for receipt of application.

11. Learned Standing Counsel also relied on various decisions of

the Hon’ble High Court to justify the rejection of the appellant’s
application. In O.P.No.28906/2002 the Hon’ble High Court has
upheld the action of the PSC in having rejected a claim of
equivalency since there was no order issued by the Government
under Rule 10 of the K.S.&S.S. Rules treating the qualifications as
equal. In W.A.No.2001/2006 the Hon’ble Division Bench upheld
the action in having refused to accept a certificate produced at a
later stage. It is contended that in this case also as on the last
date of submission of the applications there was no Government

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 Order and a subsequent order cannot be accepted. The learned
Standing Counsel also relied on the judgment in O.P.No.408/2002
wherein it is held that “once a particular qualification is
prescribed for a post in the notification, accepting some other
qualification as equivalent after making a roving enquiry, is in
fact a fraud on the public.”

12. Learned Counsel for the applicant submits that the above
decisions will not apply to this case as it is not a case of this
Tribunal holding an enquiry to accept another qualification as
equivalent. The Government has already declared the
equivalency as per Annexure A13 order. He also says that in
Annexure A6 K-VASU has stated that these qualifications are
equivalent. But in the case of the applicant, Annexure A6
certificate was produced before the PSC even before the
verification of certificate. It should be noticed that it was
considering the said certificate that the Government issued
Annexure A13 order dated 4/7/2019 declaring that the
applicant’s qualification is equivalent to the notified qualification.

13. The learned Counsel for the applicant also relied on the
judgment in Kerala PSC Vs Abdul Rasheed (2007(3)KHC
480) wherein the Hon’ble Division Bench has held that
Commission should take into account the decisions which are
within the domain of the State Government and that the PSC
cannot impose its own policy in a matter beyond its purview. It is
contended that acceptance and recognition of a qualification is

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 within the purview of the Government and the PSC cannot ignore
such decisions. It is evident that Annexure A6 certificate, on the
basis of which the Government issued Annexure A13 order, was
produced before the PSC at the time of verification of certificates.

14. The decision of the Commission not to accept Annexure A6

Certificate and the rejection of the application of the applicant for
selection to the post of Junior Instructor (Dairying) are therefore
set aside. The PSC is bound to treat BSc Degree (Food Science
and Quality Control) awarded by the Mahathma Gandhi
University as sufficient for selection to the post notified as per
Annexure A1 Notification (Category No.530 of 2012). The PSC is
directed to accept the candidature of the applicant, publish her
result and include her in the ranked list published on 30/10/2017
on the basis of her performance in the selections process. The
respondent shall issue necessary orders in this regard forthwith.

The Original Application is allowed to the above extent.

Sd/- V.Rajendran, Member

/true copy/

Deputy Registrar (Judicial)

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 ess

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 APPENDIX

OA-1789/2O17

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 APPLICANT'S ANNEXURES:

Annexure True copy of the Gazette notification dated

A1- 15.11.12.

Annexure True copy of the degree certificate of the

A2- applicant.

Annexure True copy of short list No.12/16/ERXII dated

A3- 4.2.16.

Annexure True copy of Letter No.ER XII(3)8748/14/EW dated

A4- 9.10.2015.

Annexure True copy of the representation dated 30.10.2015 of

A5- the applicant to the PSC.

Annexure True copy of the Letter No.KVASU/DAR/Acad

A6- B3/13165/15 dated 30.10.2015.

Annexure True copy of One Time Registration Verification

A7- Certificate dated 17.3.2016.

Annexure True copy of the interview programme for the month

A8- of September 2017.

Annexure True copy of the representation dated

A9- 13.9.2017.

True copy of GO(MS)No.303/2018/HEDN dated

Annexure
17.12.2018 issued by the Higher Education
A10-
Department, Thiruvananthapuram.

True copy of Letter-B2/156/2019/HEDN dated

Annexure 28.6.2019 from the Secretary to Government to the
A11- Member Secretary, Kerala State Higher Education
Council dated 28.6.2019.

True copy of letter KSHEC-A-3/321/SLAC/2019 from

Annexure
Member Secretary KSHEC to the Principal Secretary
A12-
to Government dated 1.7.2019.

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 Annexure True copy of GO(Rt) No.1137/2019/HEDN dated
A13- 4.7.2019 of the 1st respondent.

True copy of Certificate No.A1/1350/2017 dated

Annexure
12.11.2018 of the Principal PCTM Government
A14-
Industrial Training Institute, Pallikkathode, Kottayam.

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