VATAN Vs. UNION OF INDIA AND ORS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner is aggrieved by the order dated 23. 05. 2016, passed by the Central Administrative Tribunal dismissing his original application assailing a letter dated 07. 09. 2011, issued by the respondent No. 3/DMRC informing him that he could not lay a claim to his candidature for the post of a Customer Relation Assistant (in short "CRA") after the validity of the panel drawn for the said post, had lapsed.

(2.) By the impugned order dated 23. 05. 2016, the Tribunal dismissed the original application filed by the petitioner with the observation that when the validity of the panel was already over and the respondent No. 3/DMRC has filled up the vacancy, there was no question of entertaining the prayer made by the petitioner.

(3.) The brief undisputed facts of the case are that the respondent No. 3/DMRC had issued an advertisement in the year 2010 for filling up vacancies to the post of CRA. The petitioner had qualified in the selection process and was included in the panel of selected candidates prepared on 07. 02. 2011, as per Rule 13 (iv) of the DMRC Rules, which deals with formation of a panel and its validity. Each panel for direct recruitment has a validity period of two years from the date of its approval by the Competent Authority and the said panel ceases to operate on expiry of two years, unless it is specifically extended by the Competent Authority for a further period, not exceeding 12 months. Applying the said rule to the present case, as the panel of selected candidates was prepared by the respondent No. 3/DMRC on 07. 02. 2011, the prescribed period of two years would have expired on 06. 02. 2013 and in the absence of any specific order passed by the Competent Authority, the panel stood lapsed on the said date.