VIJAY KUMAR SRIVASTAVA Vs. STATE OF UTTARANCHAL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner has filed this writ petition praying for "a writ of quo warranto In relation to public office of Head of the Department I Chief General Manager of Uttaranchal Jal Sansthan, Dehradun". The petitioner is presently the Superintending Engineer, Uttaranchal Jal Sansthan, Almora. The second respondent Mr. H.P. Uniyal is the Chief General Manager, Uttaranchal Jal Sansthan, Dehradun. The contention of the petitioner is that the appointment of the second respondent as the Head of the Department chief General Manager of Uttaranchal Jal Sansthan is Illegal and therefore, a writ of quo warranto should be issued calling upon him to explain under what authority he is holding the said office.

(2.) THE petitioner and the second respondent were appointed as Assistant Engineers in Garhwal Water Works, Dehradun on 24 -11 -1976. As evidenced by Annexure P/1 order the name of the petitioner was given above the name of the second respondent In the appointment order dated 24 -11 -1976. Later, by Annexure P/2 order dated 17 -11 -1979 of the General Manager, Garhwal Water Works, the petitioner and the second respondent were confirmed on the post of Assistant Engineer with effect from 24 -11 -1977. Annexure P/2 contained two lists. In the first list of seven persons, the name of the petitioner was given at Serial No.1. In the second list of three persons the name of the second respondent was given at Serial No.1. Thus, the petitioner was treated as senior to the second respondent in the cadre of Assistant Engineers. Subsequently, as per Annexure P/3 order dated 11 -12 -1984, the petitioner was promoted as Executive Engineer on ad hoc basis. The second respondent was not there among the Assistant Engineers promoted as per Annexure P/3 order. But the second respondent had already been appointed as Executive Engineer on temporary basis on 01 -10 -1980 as per order date 1 -10 -1980 of the General Manager, Garhwal Water Works. When a Tentative Seniority List of officers under Group 'B' working In the Water Works, Sewerage and Nagar Palika Boards was prepared on 06 -09 -1989 under Rule 6 of U.P. Water Works and Sewerage (Centralised) Service Rules, 1986, the name of the petitioner was shown at Serial No. 31 whereas the name of the second respondent was shown at Serial No. 32 among Executive Engineers. In the Remarks Column in the seniority list, it was stated that Garhwal Jal Sansthan had promoted the second respondent as Executive Engineer on 01 -10 -1980; that his promotion was by local arrangement for executing civil works; that at the time of his promotion, the name of the petitioner was not considered; that the petitioner was promoted w.e.f. 11 -12 -1984 after he completed seven years of service; and that the second respondent was deemed to have been promoted from 11 -12 -1984 and accordingly placed below the petitioner. The second respondent made representation against the Tentative Seniority List objecting to his placement below the petitioner in the said seniority list. As per an Order No. 273/9 -3 -90256 -W/86 dated 14 -01 -1990 of the Government of Uttar Pradesh, the Final Seniority List of -the officers working in the Water Works, Hydrology, Nagar Palika Boards was issued under Rule 6 of the U.P. Palika and Water Works (Centralised) Service Rules, 1986. In the said Final Seniority List, the name of the second respondent was shown at Serial No.1 among Executive Engineers and his date of appointment was shown as 01 -10 -1980. The name of the petitioner was not included in the said Final Seniority List.

(3.) HENCE , challenging the said Final Seniority List dated 14 -01 -1990, the petitioner alongwith another person filed Writ Petition No. 3948 of 1990 [now renumbered as Writ Petition No. 27 (S/B) of 2004] in the High Court of Allahabad - Lucknow Bench. The second respondent herein was impleaded as the third respondent in that writ petition. While issuing notice to the respondents In the writ petition, a Division Bench of the High Court of Allahabad passed an interim order on 25 -04 -1990 directing as follows: