SUBHASHISH BAGCHI Vs. UNION BANK OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) A short legal issue which appears to be covered by a Supreme Court judgment has arisen in this case. The petitioner, who is now the Manager (Finance) at the Haldia Dock Complex of the Kolkata Port Trust and officiating as the Financial Advisor and Chief Accounts Officer, contends that the amendment to the rules made for the post of Financial Advisor and Chief Accounts Officer after the vacancy in that post had arisen would not apply to the process of filling up the vacancy which had arisen but will only apply upon future vacancies arising for the post.

(2.) The facts are not much in dispute. The vacancy arose on March 1, 2012 and applications for the post were invited on March 9, 2013 and it appears that the Chairman of KoPT wrote to the Ministry for urgently filling up the post. No steps were thereafter taken apparently because of the change of the qualifications for the post that was mulled by the Ministry. The amendment to the Kolkata Port Trust Employees (Recruitment, Seniority and Promotion) Regulations, 2013 was introduced on October 15, 2013. The amended qualifications require a candidate to be a member of either the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India or the Institute of Cost and Works Accountants of India. The petitioner is not a member of either institute. The amended qualifications made such membership an essential criterion. As a consequence, the petitioner was no longer eligible for promotion to the post and advertisements have been issued for direct recruitment. No steps have, however, been taken to recruit any candidate during the pendency of this petition.

(3.) It is submitted on behalf of the petitioner that though an employee may have no vested right to be promoted, yet upon a vacancy arising and the employer not evincing an interest to not immediately fill up the vacancy, the rules applicable to the post at the date of vacancy would govern the procedure for filling up thereof. At any rate, it is submitted that once applications are invited for filling up the post, the qualifications for the post as applicable at the date of the vacancy or at the date of applications being invited therefor would govern the post and a subsequent amendment to the qualifications would be irrelevant.