UOI Vs. SWATI S. PATIL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Respondent Ms.Swati S.Patil, an officer of the Indian Revenue Service (1974 Batch) working as Commissioner of Income Tax as of the year 2011, had a problem with the Annual Confidential Report (ACR) for the year 2003-04 wherein she had been graded 'Good', a grade which was below the prescribed benchmark of 'Very Good'. Since there were vacancies in the promotional scale and a DPC was expected to be convened, before which Committee the ACR for the year 2003-04 was to be placed for consideration, realizing that the law declared by the Supreme Court on May 12, 2008 as per decision Dev Dutt Vs. UOI & Ors., 2008 8 SCC 725 required said below benchmark ACR grading to be intimated to the respondent for her response, the said below 4 benchmark ACR grading was communicated to the respondent on May 12, 2010. She immediately approached the Central Administrative Tribunal under OA No.2033/2010 praying for a direction that the said below benchmark ACR grading should be totally ignored for the reason it was only the Initiating Officer who had penned his opinion in the ACR proforma which was never accepted by the Accepting Authority or by the Reporting Authority.

(2.) In view of the law declared by the Supreme Court in the opinion SBI Vs. Kashi Nath Kher, 1996 AIR(SC) 1328 the Tribunal opined as per the impugned decision dated February 11, 2011, that the ACR for the year in question has to be ignored. The direction issued is that as and when DPC sits to consider the eligible candidates for promotion, respondent's ACR for the year 2003-04 would be ignored and in its place an earlier ACR should be considered.

(3.) Indeed, in Kashi Nath Kher's case , law declared by the Supreme Court, in para 15, is that the object of writing confidential reports is to not only give an opportunity to the officer appraised to remove deficiencies but additionally to improve quality, excellence and efficiency in public service. This makes it imperative that confidential reports should be written by superior officers. Not only should the officer initiating the confidential report should be higher in rank to the appraisee, there should be another officer above the rank of the Initiating Officer to record his opinion. The report thus written should form the basis for consideration for promotion.