The Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) directed the UT Education Secretary not to dispense with the services of 42 assistant professors of Chandigarh by a set of contractual employees. (File photo)
The Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) directed the UT Education Secretary not to dispense with the services of 42 assistant professors of Chandigarh by a set of contractual employees.
The 42 assistant professors had approached the tribunal seeking directions to be issued to Chandigarh Administration’s Education Secretary, to allow them to continue their service till the posts are filled on regular basis by direct recruitment through UPSC.
Counsel of the applicants, advocate Rohit Seth submitted that since the Education Secretary and the Chandigarh Government College Principles cannot replace the contractual employees with another set of contractual employees, the applicants should be given protection by not replacing them.
The regular appointment to the post of assistant professor takes a long period, particularly when the UPSC is involved, and the post cannot be left unmanned keeping in view the interest of the students and their continuation in degree classes. The number of students in all the colleges have been increasing every year and teacher-student ratio need to be maintained, argued advocate Seth.
UT Nodal Officer advocate Arvind Moudgil argued that they had already sent 39 requisitions to the UPSC for filling up the posts of assistant professors in Government Arts and Science College, UT Chandigarh, in response to which 35 recommendations have been received from the UPSC, out of which 29 posts of assistant professors have been filled up on regular basis and for the remaining posts also, the process is going on.
After hearing the arguments, the Tribunal bench disposed of the matter and directed the Education Secretary to not dispense with the services of the applicants by another set of contractual employees unless they have disqualification in capacity of their continuation.