The tussle over appointment of private individuals as fellows and associate fellows intensified with the Delhi Legislative Assembly speaker Ram Niwas Geol on Friday written to Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena saying there was no reason for Assembly secretariat to discontinue fellowships and any action taken against them will be a breach of privilege and contempt of the House.
In his letter, Goel said fellow /associate fellow of the Delhi Assembly Research Centre (DARC) were engaged after following the due process of as required by law. “As the Fellowship Programme does not fall under employment/ appointment the question of violating the constitutional provisions of reservations does not arise. The OMs mentioned in the Services Department’s letter regarding reservations solely pertain to appointments and not research fellowship”.
“The Fellow/ Associate Fellow is neither a ‘civil post” nor the same is an “office”. A civil post is created as per Article 309 and the appointment and removal of a person appointed on a civil post in accordance to Article 311.
There is neither any application of the above Articles in the Fellowship programme nor can the Fellows take any shelter of the same in the event of the early termination of the contract. Thus, the persons engaged in the Fellowship Programme cannot be stated to holding a ‘civil post’ or appointment/ employment. In such a situation, it is not clear how it is being claimed that the Fellowship Programme is a ‘Services’ matter”, reads the letter.
The letter further said these communications issued by the Services Department and Finance Department appear to have been issued in a hurried manner without examining the matter in detail or seeking legal opinion or the views of the affected stake holders Displacing these young professionals without any discussion or notice is against the principles of natural justice and smacks of arbitrariness and unexplained vindictiveness.