B. RUGMINI AMMA Vs. NIRMALA KUMARI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) An appellate order dated 01.02.2006 of the Kerala High Court affirming the order dated 09.02.2005 of the learned Single Judge passed in a writ petition has been put to challenge in this appeal. The aforesaid two orders having somewhat circumscribed the perceived avenues for promotion of Graduate Typists/Confidential Assistants to the post of Section Officer in the Administrative Secretariat, two affected Graduate Typists, who have since been promoted to even higher post in the Secretariat, have instituted the present appeal.

(2.) To unravel the controversy between the parties, a brief narration of the essential facts would be required. Initially, a Government Order (for short "G.O.") dated 10.1.1977 governed the method of promotions to the post of Section Officer in the Administrative Secretariat and also laid down the essential qualifications of the incumbents in the feeder category to be eligible for consideration for such promotion. The aforesaid G.O. dated 10.1.1977 was superseded by another order dated 5.6.1989 under which G.O. three categories of incumbents in the ratio of 15:1:1 (in a cluster of 17 posts) were made eligible for promotion to the post of Section Officer. Senior Grade Assistants, Typists and Confidential Assistants (in that order) formed the feeder categories eligible for consideration for promotion. Insofar as Typists and Confidential Assistants are concerned, the requirement spelt out by the G.O. dated 5.6.1989 is that they should have passed the Secondary School Leaving Certificate (S.S.L.C.) examination besides passing a suitability test conducted by the Kerala Public Service Commission. Such an incumbent should also have satisfactorily completed training as Assistant for a minimum period of one year. It would be necessary to specifically notice that by the G.O. dated 5.6.1989, Graduate Typists and Confidential Assistants were continued to be exempted from passing the suitability test for promotion to the post of Section Officer in terms of an earlier G.O. dated 17.6.1988. The aforesaid G.O. dated 17.6.1988 exempted the Graduate Typists and Confidential Assistants in the Administrative Secretariat from passing the qualifying examination subject to the conditions mentioned in the several clauses thereto. Clause (d) being the relevant clause may be usefully noticed at this stage.

(3.) Clause (d) contained in the G.O. dated 17.6.1988 came to be subjected to different interpretations and understandings unravelling several ambiguities. The core of the controversy was with regard to the purport and effect of the exemption, namely, whether it gave a preferential right to Graduate Typists/Confidential Assistants for consideration for promotion and, if so, was the said right available in perpetuity after the date of coming into force of the G.O. w.e.f. 17.6.1988. The aforesaid controversy between the Graduate and Non-graduate aspirants for the promotional post was attempted to be resolved by several court orders until the Government thought it appropriate to clarify the matter by issuing a subsequent G.O. almost a decade later, i.e., on 19.3.1998. The aforesaid G.O. dated 19.3.1998 which is on record goes on to recite that, "The Typists/Confidential Assistants who had passed the Suitability Test and completed the training for one year as Assistant and became qualified for appointment as Section Officer in the Administrative Secretariat as on 17.06.1988 alone would be eligible for preference over the Graduate Typists/Confidential Assistants".