HASHIM Vs. UNIVERSITY OF KERALA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Inter-se seniority between the petitioner and the respondents 3 and 4 in the post of Library Assistant under the first respondent University is the dispute involved in this Writ Petition.

(2.) Pursuant to the applications invited by the University for direct recruitment to the post of Library Assistant, the petitioner as well as the respondents 3 and 4 appeared for the written test held on 30.12.1995, followed by the interview on 05.08.1996 and on coming out successful in the process of selection, they were included in the rank list which came into force from 23.8.1996. Pursuant to the orders of appointment issued, the petitioner joined the service as 'Library Assistant' on 5.10.1996, while the 3rd and 4th respondents joined on 3.10.1996 and 30.9.1996 respectively.

(3.) Respondents 3 and 4 who were stated as having a better claim of seniority over the petitioner, apprehending the steps of the University to promote the petitioner to the next higher grade of Technical Assistant, approached this Court by filing O.P. No. 28762/1999 praying to promote them in preference to the petitioner. During the pendency of said Original Petition, the respondent University published Ext.P4 provisional seniority list placing the petitioner and the respondents 3 and 4 at serial Nos. 4,5 and 6 respectively. Based on the position in the said seniority list, the petitioner was promoted to the post of 'Technical Assistant' on a provisional basis, as borne by Ext.P5. In the said circumstance, the petitioners in O.P. No. 28762/1999 caused to amend the O.P., also seeking for appropriate reliefs, contending that the original appointment given to the petitioner was against the wrong slot and that the respondent University had violated the rules of reservation embodied under Rules 14 to 17 of K.S. & S.S.R.