DIRECTOR GENERAL Vs. KARTIKESWAR JENA AND ANR.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The order dated 15.2.1999 passed by the Orissa Administrative Tribunal, Bhubaneswar in Original Application No.990 of 1988 has been assailed by the Director General of Police, State of Orissa, whereby and where under the learned Tribunal has allowed the Original Application and directed the authorities to extend the benefit of promotion to opposite party no.1 to the rank of Inspector holding the reversion as illegal.

(2.) The fact of the case in brief is that the opp.party no.1 entered into the Govt. Service as Sub-Inspector of Police in the year 1964. In the year 1986 recommendations were called for from the Superintendents of Police of the respective districts for promotion to the rank of Inspector. The opposite party no.3 has been nominated for promotion to the rank of Inspector and during pendency of the final decision to be taken by the Departmental Promotion Committee, opposite party no.1 has been allowed to officiate in the rank of Inspector purely on ad hoc basis with immediate effect subject to condition that he will be reverted to the rank of Sub-Inspector of Police at any time without issuing any notice or assigning any reasons thereof. The case of opposite party no.1 has been considered for promotion to the rank of Inspector by the Central Selection Board, but he was not found fit to get promotion to the rank of Inspector and accordingly, his case has been rejected and in consequence he was directed to discharge his duties as Sub-Inspector of Police to which opp.party no.1 has challenged before the Orissa Administrative Tribunal, Bhubaneswar on the ground that before asking the opposite party no.1 to discharge his duties as Sub-Inspector of Police, the process under Article 311(2) of the Constitution of India has not been followed, this plea of opposite party no.1 has been accepted by the Tribunal, the order of restoring back the service of the opposite party no.1 as Sub-Inspector of Police has been recalled, he has been directed to discharge his duties as Inspector, which is under challenge in this writ application by the Director General-cum-Inspector General, State of Odisha on the ground that there is no question of reversion of the opposite party no.1 from the rank of Inspector to the rank of Sub-Inspector since opposite party no.1 has never been granted regular promotion of Inspector as would be evident from the order dated 24.4.1987 (Annexure-3) by which it is found that he was directed to discharge his duties as officiating Inspector and when he was found fit by the duly constituted Selection Committee, he was asked to discharge his duties in his substantive post and as such, there is no question of following the principle as laid down under Article 311(2) of the Constitution of India since it is not a punishment.

(3.) None appears for opposite party no.1. We have heard the learned counsel for the State and perused the documents available on record.