JAYAGANESH BEEDU Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner in this petition is working as Superintending Engineer (Mechanical) in the 3rd respondent-New Mangalore Port Trust (hereinafter referred to as the Tort Trust' ). In this petition he has made three prayers. Firstly, he has prayed for striking down "new Mangalore Port trust (Recruitment of Heads of Department) Regulations, 2001" (hereinafter referred to as the regulations') insofar as it provides for the method of selection by "composite recruitment" to the post of Chief Mechanical Engineer on the ground that it is arbitrary and ultra vires of constitution of India. Secondly, he has prayed for a declaration that the selection of the 5th respondent to the post of Chief Mechanical Engineer on the establishment of the 3rd respondent-Port Trust as illegal; and thirdly, he has prayed for a direction to the Selection Committee constituted for selection to the post of Chief Mechanical Engineer to consider the case of the petitioner for appointment. Facts in brief, which are not in serious dispute, may be stated as hereunder:

(2.) ACCORDING to the case set out by the petitioner, the petitioner is a b. E. (Mechanical) by qualification and has passed from Karnataka Regional Engineering College, Suratkal in first class obtaining 13th Rank in Engineering Graduate Examination; and thereafter he was appointed as a Section Officer (Class-Ill) on 26th December, 1967 in which post he continued till he was promoted to the post of Assistant Engineer (Class-ID on 19th April, 1973; and on 12th January, 1986 he was promoted to the cadre of Assistant Executive Engineer (Junior Class-I) and thereafter again he was promoted to the post of Assistant Executive Engineer (Mechanical) and Deputy Controller of Stores which is a Senior Class-I post; and Subsequently, the petitioner was promoted as Superintending engineer on 28th April, 1997. It is his further case that he has been holding the post of Chief Mechanical Engineer on in charge basis since june 1997. It is the case of the petitioner that in the various positions held by him, he had the occasion to hold and discharge various types of works in the 3rd respondent-Port Trust, and had gained experience to effectively function as Chief Mechanical Engineer in the 3rd respondent port Trust and he has discharged his functions blemishlessly and has earned his promotions from time to time to higher positions as and when the vacancy arose purely on the basis of merit and high quality of efficiency exercised by him in discharge of his duties. It is his further case that it is the aspiration of every employee who joins at a particular cadre in the ladder of Mechanical Engineering to reach the highest position of the Head of Department in the 3rd respondent-Port Trust before he retires; and the petitioner had the similar ambition; and when he joined the 3rd respondent-Port Trust, the feeder cadre to the post of Chief mechanical Engineer was from the cadre of Mechanical Engineering only.

(3.) THE recruitment, seniority and promotion of the employees of the 3rd respondent-Port Trust is governed by the Regulations framed by the port Trust in exercise of the powers conferred on it under Section 28 read with Section 124 of the major port Trusts Act, 1963 (hereinafter referred to as "the Act" ). The Central Government in exercise of the powers conferred on it under sub-section (i) of Section 124 read with sub-section (i) of Section 132 of the Act approved the amendment made to the regulations by means of its notification dated 5th December, 2001, framed by the Port Trust. The next higher post from the cadre of the post of Superintending Engineer (Mechanical) is the post of "chief Mechanical Engineer". As it could be seen from the Schedule given to the regulations, the post of Chief Mechanical Engineer is made as a selection post and the method of recruitment is made both by direct recruitment and by way of promotion/transfer/deputation. The qualification in the case of recruitment by promotion/transfer/deputation prescribed is that the candidate should be a Superintending Engineer (Mechanical / Electrical) with five years of regular service in the grade of Marine engineer with MOT First Class Certificate with five years regular service in the grade /analogous posts from the major ports failing which by transfer or deputation of officers holding same or analogous posts in government /semi-Government Organisations/public Sector Undertakings or Autonomous Bodies. It is further provided that the selection is by merit, for which the bench-mark in the overall grading in the ACRs should not be below "very Good".