RANGANATH S M Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Writ petitioners are persons who had worked for five years as 'Postal Assistants' were eligible for promotion as 'Post Master Grade-I' provided they clear departmental examination held for such purpose. The post also enables a person on putting requisite number of years of service to take up limited departmental competitive examination aspiring for promotion to the post of 'Inspector of Posts'.

(2.) It so happened that the writ petitioners aspired for these posts and had written the limited departmental competitive examination both for the post of 'Post Master Grade-I' and 'Inspector of Posts'. The examination for the post of 'Post Master Grade-I' was held on 12.06.2011 and results were announced on 30.06.2011. The examination for the post of 'Inspector of Posts' was held on 15.10.2011 and 16.10.2011 and it appears re-examination was conducted in one paper and that was during January 2012 and results were announced on 4.4.2012. In the meanwhile, it appears the petitioners who had already passed the examination for the post of 'Post Master Grade-I' were sent for two months training prior to appointment and after completing the same, they were appointed to the post of 'Post Master Grade-I' as on 28.12.2011. They are on probation as of now. These posts were created for the first time in the year 2010 to provide career promotional opportunities to in service candidates in the year 2010. Petitioners' result for the examination conducted to the post of 'Inspector of Posts' which was otherwise announced on 4.4.2012 for all other candidates, was withheld insofar as petitioners are concerned on the premise that they had already exercised the option to join the cadre of 'Post Master Grade-I' and also by accepting the condition that once they accept for promotion in this cadre, they will not be permitted to opt out of this to go in for the channel of 'Inspector of Posts'. Such an option was exercised on the premise of condition No.2 in the Official Memorandum dated 28.12.2011 which reads as under:

(3.) Petitioners who later came to know that even in the examination for promotion to the post of 'Inspector of Posts', they had performed quite well and merited selection if should they have been considered only on the basis of their performance in the examination and with the result in the examination itself having not been announced, that had come in the way of they being selected to the post of 'Inspector of Posts' and in this background had approached the Central Administrative Tribunal seeking for relief that the respondents - Union of India and Chief Post Master General should be directed to announce results of their performance in the examination conducted to the post of 'Inspector of Posts' and based on such results give promotion to the petitioners.