N. R. SUNDARAM AND OTHERS Vs. CHIEF ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER, MINISTRY OF DEFENCE, GOVT. OF INDIA, NEW DELHI AND ANOTHER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This judgment will dispose of three Writ Petitions mentioned above. The petitioners are Upper Division Clerks in the Armed Forces Headquarters. These petitions raise a common question regarding the date of their confirmations and seniority in the cadre of Lower Division Clerks. It is a common ground that they were working in different capacities in various military establishments and their services were transferred in public interest to the Armed Forces Headquarters in the cadre of Lower Division Clerks. They joined their services in the Armed Forces Headquarters on various dates between 1960 and 1964. There were no statutory Rules regarding their confirmations or determining the principles of seniority till 1-3-1968. The Armed Forces Headquarters Clerical Service Rules, 1968 came into effect from 1st March, 1968. The service conditions prior to 1968 were regulated by various administrative instructions.

(2.) On 21st December, 1963 the Ministry of Defence issued an Office Memorandum for regulating the procedure for filling permanent vacancies that occurred from 1-1-1959 onwards in the grade of Lower Division Clerks. There were other Memoranda issued prior to 1963 for the same purpose. It is an admitted fact that the said Memorandum of 1963 consolidated all earlier instructions on two principal points : (1) the mandatory requirement of passing a typewriting test conducted by the U. P. S. C. for purposes of confirmation & (2) the seniority should be regulated on the principle of length of service and not date of confirmation. It is not disputed by either side that the posts of Upper Division Clerks were filled by promotion on the basis of seniority in the cadre of the Lower Division Clerks.

(3.) It was initially prescribed that the U. P. S. C. typewriting test should be passed by each L. D. C. within four chances after joining the Army Headquarters. This period was extended from time to time through various Memoranda published before and after the statutory Rules came into force in 1968. The grievance of the petitioners is that the respondents have applied these Memoranda in an arbitrary manner resulting in postponement of their dates of confirmation. In particular the grievance is that the respondents have erroneously fixed their dates of confirmation from the date of passing of the U. P. S. C. typing test. According to the petitioners their confirmations should relate back to their due dates of promotion. The due dates of promotions under the administrative instructions would accrue after completion of three years' service as a L.D.C. Since the basis of promotion was length of service, the petitioners contend that their confirmation should be decided from the due dates, viz. completion of three years after joining the Army Headquarters. They contend that the respondents have erroneously assumed the date of confirmation (equated with the date of passing the U. P. S. C. typing test) as a principle governing the seniority in the cadre of L.D.C.