G S GILL Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellants filed a petition before the High Court of Punjab under Article 226 and 227 of the constitution for quashing the orders passed by the State of Punjab reverting them from the posts held by them in an officiating capacity in the cadre and ex-cadre posts of senior scale of Indian Administrative Service to their substantive posts in the State Civil Service from which they were promoted.

(2.) The appellants contended before the High Court that the orders of reversion were punitive in character and, therefore, attracted the provisions of Article 311 of the Constitution and since they were given no reasonable opportunity to make their representations against the reversion, the orders were bad and prayed for quashing them. The High Court overruled the contention and dismissed the petition. This appeal, by certificate, is against that order.

(3.) The case of the appellants in the writ petition was that their names were included in the Select List prepared under Regulation 4 of the Indian Administrative Service (Appointment by Promotion) Regulations.) and that they thereby acquired right to be appointed to the cadre and ex-cadre posts in the Indian Administrative Service. In paragraphs 11 and 13 of the writ petition, they said that in the State of Punjab there were two types of posts in the Senior Duty Scale, namely, (i) cadre posts which are specified in the Schedule to the Indian Administrative Service (Cadre) Rules, 1954 and, (ii) ex-cadre posts:that the ex-cadre posts were created by the State Government from time to time according to exigencies of service and in matters of pay promotion and other benefits, the ex-cadre posts were declared equivalent to a cadre post and that they were appointed to senior duty posts in cadre and ex-cadre in 1963 and 1964.