Dimapur, September 23 (MExN): The Nagaland NET Qualified Forum (NNQF) has written to the State Minister for Higher Education Temjen Imna Along requesting him to reconsider the regularization process of contractual Assistant Professors.
Citing news reports broadcast in a local television news channel which reportedly stated that ‘154 contractual assistant professor posts are in the process of regularization,’ the Forum stated that the news was received with much dismay for many eligible candidates in Nagaland comprising candidates whose opportunities were lost over the years of non-advertisement as well as those who are waiting for a chance again.
“In both cases, the right to equal opportunity and free-fair competition is deprived and violated. The decision to regularize the contractual assistant professors only depicts that the system rewards those with the ability to get into the higher education system of Nagaland without going through the proper channel/institution i.e., the Nagaland Public Service Commission, (NPSC) Common Educational Service Examination, (CESE) or through public advertisement, and at the same time are able to retain themselves in that particular job over the years,” the Forum contended.
It said that while an Office Memorandum (No. AR-5/ASSO/98 dated June 6th, 2016) banned appointments on contractual basis; the contractual appointments continued to place. A judgment and order dated August 3, 2018 in a case filed by ACAUT and PSAN against the backdoor appointments in the Gauhati High Court, Kohima Bench, also stated that “any appointment without advertisement and the regularization of (such posts) is not only unconstitutional but null and void,” it said, quoting the Court order.
Further citing the Supreme Court judgment on the Uma Devi case in 2006, it argued that regularization of the contractual posts would only be a reflection of disrespect to the existing law and a further violation of the rights of aspirants and equality.
Meanwhile, the Forum also made reference to the Writ Petition filed by the NNQF in 2019, against the backdoor/irregular/contractual appointments in the various departments of Higher Education. The case was neither won nor lost and the judgment clearly states that the writ petition was dismissed not on merit but on the basis of technicalities, it said.
It underlined that the Court dismissed the case on the grounds of maintainability where the NNQF was given the liberty to refile through appropriate writ petition. “Thus, for respondents (illegal/ contractual/ irregular appointees) to claim that they have won the case is misleading and a misrepresentation of the judgment.”
According to the Forum, the instant representation “is an appeal that no appointments and regularization should take place on the pretext of the dismissal of the previous petition against backdoor/irregular appointments (NNQF vs the State of Nagaland judgment and order dated 6th June, 2022).”
Appealing the Minister to reconsider and withdraw the process of regularization of the contractual Assistant Professors in Higher Education Nagaland, the Forum further stated that it would “support the idea of age condonation/relaxation for the contractual employees (who by now have gained much more experience and knowledge in teaching as well as the subject matter) so that they can also take part in the right to equal opportunity and free-fair competition through direct recruitment, NPSC, CESE, along with all other aspirants who have been and are still waiting.”
