BHAGWANT SINGH Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This petition under Article 226 of theConstitution of India has been filed against the order dated 3/03/1993passed by the Personnel Division of the Minerals & Metals Trading Corporation of India Limited, New Delhi respondent herein approving the transferscertain officers. Petitioners 1 and 2 Bhagwan Singh Talwar and GuruPrasad are working as Deputy Managers with the Corporation. PetitionerNo. 3 is the M.M.T.C. Delhi Regional Officers Association and petitionerNo. 4 is the Federation of M.M.T.C. Officers Association.

(2.) Pursuant to an agreement between the Corporation and its employees, Staff Promotion Policy namely; The MMTC (Staff) PromotionPolicy 1984 (hereinafter referred to as the 1984 Policy) was created. The1984 Policy has two staff categories; (i) Local Cadre and (ii) all-India Cadre.The members of the staff under the said Policy were required to exercisetheir option for one of the two cadres. It was agreed that those who optedfor the Local Cadre will not be transferred from the station of their choicehowever in return they would have to give up the chance of accelerated promotion and would not be entitled to promotion beyond particular ceilingi.e. E-l level. When a member of the staff who opted for Local/Cadre waspromoted to the officer level he would have the opportunity to exercise theoption once again. He could at that stage change over to-all India Cadre.The MMTC officers are categorised as follows :E-l Assistant Divisional Manager or equivalentE-2 Deputy Divisional Manager or equivalentE-3 Joint Divisional Manager or equivalentE-4 Divisional Manager or equivalentE-5 General Manager or equivalentE-6 Senior General Manager or equivalent.Thus, all the members of the staff who had opted for Local/Cadre wereallowed promotion only upto the level of Assistant Divisional Manager orequivalent whereas those who opted for all-India Cadre, their promotion levelwould go upto E-6 i.e. Senior General Manager or equivalent. Clause 4.4 of1984 Policy reads as under :"4.4. Under the time bound promotion policy for managers,there will be two cadres ; namely, (i) a Load Cadre where a manager will not be transferred from the station of his choice and (ii) anall-India Cadre where the tenure and place of posting of a managerwould be at the option of the management and the managers willhave all-India transfer liability. At the time of entering the managerial cadre, i.e. when becoming an ADM or equivalent, an employee shall have to exercise option to be either in the Local Cadreor in the all-India Cadre. In case he opts for Local Cadre, he canexpect promotion only upto the level of DDM/DAM and equivalent. Option once exercised shall be final and binding and nochange will be allowed subsequently."

(3.) On 6.2.1985 a separate Promotion Policy namely MMTC(Officers) Promotion and Transfer Policy 1985 was formulated for employeesof the Corporation who bad reached the officers level. Even as per thisPolicy two cadres were envisaged. Clause 4.1 of the said Policy reads asunder:-"4.1. For the purpose of promotion/transfer there will betwo cadres of managers, namely, (1) Local Cadre and (2) all-IndiaCadre. Managers in "Local Cadre" shall not be transferred fromthe Region of their choice (viz., Delhi, Bombay, Calcutta, Madras.Vizag, Goa, Cuttack, Nalda and Bellary); Postings & Transfers ofmanagers in "all-India Cadre" shall be at the option of the Management. The seniority of incumbents of these cadres will be determined separately."Again under the said Policy-managers who upted for Local Cadre could bepromoted only Upto the level of E-2 i.e. Deputy Divisional Manager or equivalent whereas there was no such limit for the managers who opted for allIndia Cadre. The managers who opted for all India Cadre could be transferred to any of the offices of the Corporation in India and abroad with theprospects of accelerated growth opportunity as compared to the "LocalCadre". Clause 4.5 of the said Policy reads as under :-"4.5. The promotees from the staff cadres will be requiredto give their option for "Local Cadre" or "all-India Cadre" withinone month of joining as ADM/AAM failing which the managerwould be deemed to have opted for the "Local Cadre."