HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT ALLAHABAD WRIT - A No. - 4731 of 2024 Court No. - 33 HON'BLE VIKAS BUDHWAR, J. 1. Heard Sri Man Bahadur Singh, learned counsel for the petitioners and Sri Pramod Kumar Srivastava, learned Additional Chief Standing Counsel, who appears for State-respondents. 2. The counsel for the rival parties have made a joint statement that they do not propose to file any further affidavits thus with the consent of the parties, writ petition is being decided at the fresh stage. 3. The case of the writ petitioners who are 4 in number is that the petitioner no. 1 had passed Class VIII was appointed as Anganwadi Sahaika in Anganwadi Center in Gram Sabha Sisona, Block Bilaspur, District Rampur on 14.07.2011, the petitioner no. 2 also cleared Class VIII exam and was appointed as Anganwadi Sahaika in Anganwadi Center in Gram Sabha Noorpur, Block Bilaspur, District Rampur on 29.09.2007, the petitioner no. 3 was appointed as Anganwadi Sahaika in Anganwadi Center in Gram Sabha/Ward Mahunagar-2, Block Bilaspur, District Rampur on 14.07.2011 after clearing the High School examination followed by the petitioner no. 4 who cleared Class VIII was appointed as Anganwadi Sahaika in Anganwadi Center in Gram Sabha Mirzapur, Block Bilaspur, District Rampur on 15.07.2006. According to the writ petitioners, they are fully eligible and qualified in all respects to be appointed/ promoted on the post of Anganwadi Karyakarti in accordance with the Government order dated 29.01.2021, according to which the minimum educational qualification is passing of High School for appointment/ promotion on the post of Anganwadi Karyakarti. As per the writ petitioner, recruitment exercise stood undertaken in the year 2021 and filed their application in the month of June-2021. The appointment/ promotion exercise/ selection could not be Versus Counsel for Petitioner(s) : Man Bahadur Singh, Sudha Yadav Counsel for Respondent(s) : C.S.C. Sarla And 3 Others .....Petitioner(s) State Of Up And 3 Others .....Respondent(s) concluded and thereafter a Government order came to be issued on 21.03.2023 whereby the educational qualification stood elevated from High School to Intermediate and the selections were abandoned. The writ petitioners being aggrieved against the same preferred representation and since the same were not disposed of, the present writ petition came to be preferred for issuance of a direction for declaring the Government order dated 21.03.2023 issued by the State Government not to be applicable in the case of writ petitioners and to promote the writ petitioners on the post of Anganwadi Karyakarti. 4. This Court entertained the writ petition on 04.04.2024 and sought response. Thereafter a counter affidavit has been filed sworn by District Program Officer, Rampur dated 30.05.2024 to which a rejoinder affidavit has been filed. 5. Learned counsel for the writ petitioners has submitted that the action on the part of the respondents is not concluding selection process which stood commenced in the year 2021 for appointment/ promotion from the post of Anganwadi Sahaika to Anganwadi Karyakarti in terms of the Government order dated 29.01.2021 is illegal, arbitrary and in violation of Article 14 read with 16 of the Constitution of India. Submission is that once the selection process stood commenced on the basis of the Government order which was in vogue at that point of time, merely because there was at a subsequent stage, the same stood rescinded by virtue of a new Government Order, the rights which stood crystalized cannot be taken away. Submission is that now by virtue of the Government order dated 21.03.2023, the educational qualification stood elevated from High School to Intermediate and thus the claim of the writ petitioners cannot be throttled in that regard. 6. Learned Additional Chief Standing Counsel on the other hand submits that whatever might be mere selection does not give an indefeasible right and further since the selection proceedings did not conclude and the appointment orders were not issued and the writ petitioners did not join, thus, it is always open for the respondents not to proceed with the selections. 7. I have heard learned counsel for the parties and gone through the records carefully. 8. Apparently, the writ petitioners claims that they are appointed on the post of Anganwadi Shahika. They seek appointment/ promotion on the post WRIA No. 4731 of 2024 2 of Anganwadi Karyakarti. In paragraph-19 & 20, an averment has been made in the writ petition that the respondents published an advertisement for appointment on the post of Anganwadi Worker in the year 2021, the said paragraphs stands replied in paragraph-13 of the counter affidavit while stating that the same being matter of record. The application form so submitted by the writ petitioners has been annexed as Annexure-11 at page 72-74 of the paperbook, averments whereof has been made in para-20 of the writ petition, the following has been asserted as under: "19.That in the year 2021, the respondent made an advertisement for appointment on the post of Anganwadi Workers in Block Bilaspur including the post of Anganwadi Workers in Gram Sabha Sisauna, Gram Sabha/Ward Mahunagar-2 and Gram Sabha Mirzapur and online applications were invited from ( the eligible candidates including the Anganwadi Assistants working in those Anganwadi Centers. However the petitioners could not obtain a copy of the said advertisement. 20. That in pursuance of the advertisement issued by the respondents for appointment/promotion on the post of Anganwadi Workers, the petitioners being fully eligible and qualified for the post of Anganwadi Workers, submitted their online applications, which were dully accepted and duly registered. However the petitioner no. 4 could not obtained the print out of her application. Copies of Online Applications of petitioner no. 1, 2 & 3 are collectively being filed herewith and marked as Annexure No. 11 to this writ petition." 9. The same has been replied in para-13 &14 of the counter affidavit, the following was observed as under: "13. That the contents of paragraph no. 18 and 19 of the writ petition being matter of record as such needs no comments. 14. That in reply to the contents of paragraph no. 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27 and 28 of the writ petition it is submitted that also a Government Order dated 29.01.2021 has been issued by the State Government for selection of Anganwadi Karyakarti, Mini Anganwadi and Sahaika in the aforesaid Government Order the educational qualification is fixed to pass high school. It is the admitted case that for selection of Anganwadi Karyakarti State Government has issued Government Order from time to WRIA No. 4731 of 2024 3 time and no Rules has been framed. However, pursuant to the Government Order dated 29.01.2021 the advertisement has been notified for appointment of Anganwadi Karyakarti. In paragraph 3(1) of the Government Order it has been mentioned 50% post of Anganwadi Karyakarti shall be filled up of Anganwadi Sahaika who is completed 5 years regular services and passed high school and not crossed the age of 50 years. The petitioner has submitted an application form for appointment of Anganwadi Karyakarti under the aforesaid Government Order appeared completing the aforesaid selection process the State Government within its competence has issued new Government Order dated 21.03.2023 by which repealed the earlier Government Order dated 29.01.2021 and in the new Government Order the educational qualification of the Anganwadi Karyakarti for appointment of Anganwadi Karyakarti and Anganwadi Sahaika is fixed to pass intermediate examination. It is further submitted in the aforesaid Government Order, it has been also clearly mentioned that the selection process who has not completed the same shall be cancelled and the new selection process be completed pursuant to the above order dated 21.03.2023." 10. As a matter of fact that the writ petitioners are stated to have applied for appointment/ promotion on the post of Anganwadi Karyakarti on the basis of the applications so submitted in the year-2021 in terms of the Government order dated 29.01.2021 providing for minimum qualification to be High School but since according to the parties, the selection had not concluded by issuance of an appointment/ promotion order, thus, the respondents abandoned the said selections in the wake of issuance of another Government order dated 21.03.2023 rescinding the earlier Government order dated 29.01.2021 whereby the educational qualification stood upgraded from High School to Intermediate. 11. In the opinion of the Court, mere selection does not confer a legal right and merely because the writ petitioners applied in pursuance of the advertisement would not give an indefeasible right for appointment, particularly, when the selections process a per the parties were never finalized and there was no appointment order issued in that regard. 12. Apart from the same, it is not within the domain of the Court to issue a blanket direction for appointment once the stand has been taken by the respondents with relation to the fact that now the selections is to be done in pursuance of the Government order dated 21.03.2023 and not 29.01.2021. In absence of any legal vested right, no mandamus can be issued as sought for. WRIA No. 4731 of 2024 4 13. Accordingly, the writ petition stands rejected. March 19, 2026 Ashu WRIA No. 4731 of 2024 5 (Vikas Budhwar,J.) Digitally signed by :- ASHUTOSH KUMAR PRAJAPATI High Court of Judicature at Allahabad Digitally signed by :- ASHUTOSH KUMAR PRAJAPATI High Court of Judicature at Allahabad