'Intimate decision on appointment of Foreigners Tribunals staff'

 HC asks Centre, Dispur to file affidavits

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: The Gauhati High Court has asked the Union Home Ministry and Assam's Home & Political Department to hold discussions and then file affidavits within four weeks to intimate their decision as to whether ministerial (clerical and lower grade) staff of the new Foreigners Tribunals (FTs) of the state, who were selected through an official recruitment process earlier, would be issued appointment orders or not.

The court's directive came in response to a Writ Petition (3446/2021) filed by over 200 ministerial staff who were selected under a process conducted by the State Level Police Recruitment Board, Assam. The petitioners submitted that although they have been duly selected, yet the necessary appointment orders have not been issued by the government even though the validity of the selection list has been extended.

The court noted that the petitioners have been selected in view of the Union Home Ministry's decision to increase the number of FTs in Assam to 1,000 to cope with the expected litigation after rejection slips are issued by the National Register of Citizens (NRC) authority to the people excluded from the updated document. The court further noted that 200 members had been already appointed for the proposed new FTs, who are currently "entrusted with certain works for attending to the present matters relating to the Foreigners' Tribunals."

The observed that "it can be understood that the authorities may be waiting to take a decision on the appointment of the ministerial staff as the process of issuing rejection slips by the NRC, upon which it is expected that the number of referred cases in the Foreigners' Tribunals would be more, is yet to take place. But, however, we also take note that the candidates who pursuant to an advertisement had participated in a selection process and thereafter became successful, also have a legal right to know about the ultimate outcome of the process in which they had participated."

Hearing of the case will resume on September 9 next.

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