JUDGMENT D.P. Singh, J.
1. The relief claimed in this petition is for a writ of mandamus to direct the respondent No. 2 to appoint the petitioner as class III employee in pursuance of the advertisement in the Judgeship of Jaunpur on the post reserved for retrenched Army personnel.
2. In pursuance of an advertisement in the daily newspaper dated 24.7.1997 inviting applications for appointment to the post of clerk in the Judgeship at Jaunpur, the petitioner applied in the reserved category of Ex. Army personnel and he also appeared in the written test. He was not selected and thus has filed this writ petition on the ground that he was the sole Ex. Army personnel who had applied in pursuance to the advertisement and as such the respondents ought to have appointed him.
3. In the counter affidavit it is stated that though the petitioner was the sole candidate, he obtained only 40 out of 200 marks as noted below:
4. It is further stated that the petitioner did not appear in any optional papers and the copies were examined and marks awarded by the High Court itself whereafter the roster, including the promotees, was prepared.
5. Learned Counsel for the petitioner has urged that since he was the sole candidate and was eligible, he was bound to be appointed especially when no minimum marks were fixed by the respondents.
6. Though the argument appears appealing, but only at the first blush. On scrutiny its appeal pales off.
7. One of the objects to hold a written test, apart from several, is to adjudge the suitability of the candidate qua the nature of the work to be performed. A clerk in the subordinate judiciary has myriads of function to perform and his drafting should be such that it aptly conveys the gist and meaning to anyone who reads it. Precis writing is also essential so that he can condense a, otherwise large, communication or order, without distorting its meaning. From the record, as quoted above, he has secured 10/50 in simple Hindi drafting and also in precis writing. The same is the position with respect to English drafting and precis. Even though no bench work was fixed, but minimum of 33% marks are generally taken to be the pass marks in all academic examinations and the same could be applied here also. Let us examine it from another angle.
8. The entire backbone of such a clerk's job is drafting and condensed writing. Can such a person claim appointment as a matter of right, merely because he has the minimum qualification prescribed? The answer has to be in the negative. If the argument of the petitioner is accepted then it will lead to a situation where even a person who obtains no marks at all in the written test, would still claim appointment merely because he is the sole applicant in that category. A person who is being recruited on the post of clerk, apart from the educational qualification should have reasonable merit and working prowess to be appointed because he has to perform the work of a sensitive nature. There is no dearth of cases where even a selectee to a post has been held to hold no right to the post. The Apex Court in the case of Shankarsan Dash v. Union of India and Ors. has laid down that even if a person is selected, he cannot claim appointment as a matter of right. In Union of India v. S.S. Uppal and Ors. 1996 (1) J.T. 258 it has gone on to hold that even if there is a vacancy and the State has the funds, yet no direction can be issued to fill it up, unless it is provided under a statute.
9. It is also apparent from the record that all the 18 posts advertised have already been filled up and the remaining select list has also been quashed by the High Court in the judicial side.
10. For all these reasons, the court is unable to exercise its extraordinary powers under Article 226 of the Constitution of India. Rejected.