P G LALITHAMBIKA Vs. INDIAN RARE EARTHS LTD

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The bone of contention in this case is the petitioner s right for promotion as Administrative Officer of the Indian Rare Earths Ltd., who is the first respondent, w.e.f. 1-7-1996, on which date respondents 4 and 5 were promoted to posts carrying the same scale viz. Purchase Officer and Personnel Officer respectively.

(2.) The petitioner contends that she is senior to respondents 4 and 5 in so far as she joined as L.D.C./L.D. Typist on 1-1-1971, whereas respondents 4 and 5 joined the same post only 3-6-1971 and 1-11-1971 respectively. The date of next promotion as Senior Clerk/Typist as far as the petitioner was concerned is 14-3-1974 and the petitioner has all along been treated as senior to respondents 4 and 5. All of them were promoted to the next higher grade viz. Superintendent Grade II on 14-9-1992 vide orders marked as Exts.P2, P7 and P8 respectively. Superintendent Grade II, it is pointed out, is equivalent to the post of Deputy Administrative Officer/Deputy Purchase Officer/Deputy Personnel Officer. The petitioner s grievance is that when promotion to the next higher grade viz. Administrative Officer/Purchase Officers/Personnel Officer arose in the year 1996 the petitioner was overlooked and instead respondents 4 and 5 were promoted vide Exts. P9 and P10 respectively.

(3.) Mr. O.V.Radhakrishnan, who argued the case of the petitioner, submitted that in the absence of any special rules governing qualification, method of promotion etc. the practice that was prevalent viz. seniority-cum-fitness should have been followed in the matter of promotion and that if this is done, the petitioner, being senior, should have been promoted along with respondents 4 and 5 if not in preference to them.