R ARIVUDAINAMBE Vs. SECRETARY TO GOVERNMENT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) BOTH the writ petitions are filed by the same petitioner questioning the seniority list in the cadre of Jailors issued by the second respondent for the year 2005 and 2006 respectively. As the facts are same, they are taken up together for disposal.

(2.) THE facts as culled out from the pleadings go as follows:- Consequent on the taken over of the Sub Jails from the control of the revenue department and replacing of police personnel by the personnel of Jail Department, 65 posts of Assistant Jailor have to be filled up. The post of Assistant Jailor has to be filled up by promotion and by direct recruitment in the ratio of 50:50. One of the qualification for promotion from the feeder category of Chief Head Warder is that the candidate must have worked for one year in the said feeder category. As no qualified candidate for promotion as Assistant Jailor was available, direct recruitment was resorted to and Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission was addressed on 11. 10. 1982 to select 65 Assistant Jailors. Subsequently, another 24 posts of Assistant Jailors were identified and it was intimated to the Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission on 27. 12. 1982. Pending selection by the Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission, the vacancies were filled up by promotion from the category of Chief Head Warders under Rule 39 (a) (i) of the General Rules of Tamil Nadu State and Subordinate Service Rules during April 1983. The Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission selected 86 candidates and communicated the same to the respondents on 05. 12. 1984. 66 of them were appointed as the remaining 20 were not reported duty. Out of the total vacancies of 136 Assistant Jailors, the remaining posts were filled up by promotion and the promotees were regularized in the post of Assistant Jailors on 19. 03. 1985. With reference to the date of regularization, seniority was fixed placing the promotees below the direct recruits Assistant Jailors, in the proceedings of the Inspector General of Prison dated 04. 02. 1987. In the said list, the direct recruit Assistant Jailors were placed in Sl. No. 25 onwards and the promotees Assistant Jailors were placed in Sl. No. 93 onwards. The petitioner, as a direct recruit Assistant Jailor was placed in Sl. No. 30.

(3.) THE promotees Assistant Jailors aggrieved by the seniority fixed as above, filed original application in O. A. No. 126 of 1991 seeking for the relief to set aside the seniority list dated 4/2/1987 and for a direction to place them over and above the direct recruits Assistant Jailors. The original application was allowed on 4/3/1993 as prayed for with a direction to regularize the services of the promotee Assistant Jailors from the date on which they were fully qualified, if that was subsequent to the temporary appointment or from the date of temporary appointment, if on that date they were fully qualified and fix the seniority on that basis. Accordingly, the Inspector General of Prisons issued orders regularizing the services of the promotee Assistant Jailors with effect from 08. 09. 1983, ie. , the date on which they were fully qualified and published the revised seniority list of Assistant Jailors fixing the seniority above the directly recruited Assistant Jailors by proceedings dated 25/3/1994. The Direct recruit Assistant Jailors filed a review application in R. A. No. 153 of 1993 to review the order dated 9/3/1993 made in O. A. No. 126 of 1991. The same was dismissed on 13/4/1994. Subsequently, the matter was carried by way of Special Leave Petition to the Supreme Court in S. L. P. Nos. 13000 and 14296 of 194. The Apex Court, while setting aside the order of the Administrative Tribunal made on 9/3/1993 in O. A. No. 126 of 1991 remitted the case back to the Tribunal for fresh disposal vide its order dated 09. 01. 1995. After remand, the Tribunal by its order dated 19/6/1996, passed an order to place 15 promotee Assistant Jailors over and above the directly recruited Assistant Jailors appointed during 1985. A revised seniority list of Assistant Jailors was published by the Inspector General of Prison by his proceedings dated 20. 07. 1996 as per the order of the Tribunal by placing 15 promotee Assistant Jailors over and above the direct recruit Assistant Jailors. In the list, the petitioner was placed in Sl. No. 56. Again, the petitioner and two others filed a review application in R. A. No. 116 of 1996 to review the order and the same was dismissed on 05. 05. 1997. It appears that the writ petition filed against the said order was disposed of by this Court, having regard to the peculiar facts and circumstances of the case, without interfering with the order of the Tribunal in W. P. No. 9666 of 1998. Pursuant to the same, the Government has issued G. O. Ms. No. 46, Home (Prison II) Department, dated 18. 01. 2000, restoring the seniority of the Assistant Jailors/temporary Deputy Jailors in the panel for the post of Deputy Jailors for the year 1988-89. The petitioner, once again challenged the said G. O. Ms. No. 46, Home (Prison II) Department, dated 18. 01. 2000 (Seniority list published in accordance with the order of the Tribunal) in O. A. No. 2513 of 2000 before the Tamil Nadu Administrative Tribunal. On abolition of the Tribunal, the same was taken up as Writ Petition in W. P. No. 40712 of 2006. By reason best known to the petitioner, he withdrew the same and hence O. A. No. 2512 of 2000 was dismissed as withdrawn by the Division Bench of this Court on 24. 01. 2008.