MOHD. NASEEM Vs. URDU ACADEMY, DELHI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) BY this writ petition, petitioner Mohd. Naseem prays for quashing the promotion of the respondent no.3-Narinder Kumar Nagpal as a Head Clerk of the respondent no.1-Urdu Academy. Petitioner claims that petitioner was bound to be appointed because he was senior to the respondent no.3 in the tentative seniority list of UDCs as petitioner was placed at serial no.8 and the respondent no.3 was placed at serial no.9 in the said seniority list. For the appointment to the post of Head Clerk, and which is a promotion post based on seniority only, 5 years of service is required in the feeder grade i.e 5 years of service as UDC. Both the petitioner and the respondent no.3 were appointed as UDCs on 20.11.1992. Order appointing the respondent no.3 is filed as annexure R-3/1 to the counter-affidavit of respondent no.3 and the order appointing the petitioner is filed as Annexure-2 to the writ petition.

(2.) IN the counter-affidavits filed by respondents, it is asserted that petitioner was not senior as per the seniority list as pleaded of UDCs because as per the recruitment rules, if two persons are appointed on the same date, then the person who is more in age would get seniority, and the respondent no.3 was older to the petitioner. It is stated in the counter-affidavit that both the petitioner and the respondent no.3 were appointed on the same date i.e 20.11.1992, but since admittedly respondent no.3 was elder to the petitioner by one year and 11 months, respondent no.3 is senior to the petitioner. It is contended by the respondents that the seniority list relied upon by the petitioner is admittedly only a tentative seniority list and hence not final.

(3.) SO far as the fact that what would happen if two persons are appointed in the same post then how is the seniority to be determined, reference can be made to the relevant seniority rules, as relied upon on behalf of the petitioner himself. These Seniority Rules are Delhi Administration (Seniority) Rules, 1965. Relevant rule is Rule 9, and which reads as under:-