JHARNA PAUL Vs. STATE OF TRIPURA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This writ petition has been preferred by the writ petitioner who has been working as a Lower Division clerk in the Office of the Principal Chief Conservator of Forest, Government of Tripura, Agartala, in the year 1994, seeking a direction to the respondents to promote her from her initial post to the post of Upper Division Clerk (for short U.D.C.) with effect from 17-12-1987, the date when her juniors i.e. the respondents No. 3 to 11 were promoted without correcting the seniority list published on 20.7.1987 (Annexure-6 to the writ petition), notwithstanding her objection to the said seniority list where she was placed at SI. No. 132.

(2.) Her case is that since she has been appointed as per Select list which has been published in order of merit, the seniority list dated 20.7.87 ought to have been prepared keeping in view her placement in the Select list, but instead her name was placed below of her contemporary colleagues who got offer of appointment at the same time with her. Had the seniority list dated 20.7.1987 been prepared as per rule, the petitioner must have been promoted along with the respondents No. 3 to 11 to the post of U.D.C. That apart, she belongs to Scheduled Tribe Community as she comes from Laskar Community and hence she ought to have been promoted on the reserved quota for Scheduled Tribe when Sri Shyamal Chowdhury, Smti Jharna Das and Sri Dillp Majumder, all who belonged to Scheduled Tribe Community and being juniors to the petitioner, were promoted to the post ofU.D.C. It is averred that she put objection against such promotion of her juniors who were also from Scheduled Tribe community by prefering representation on 2.11.1987. Her last reminder was dated 24.10.1990. According to her, responding to her objections as regards her placement in the seniority list dated 20.7.1987. the authority recast the seniority list in the year 1990 and accordingly final seniority list of Lower Division Clerk as on 1.3.1990 was published where in her seniority position was shown at SI. 59. After publication of such final seniority list, the petitioner approached the authority for her promotion with retrospective effect as indicated above. The respondent No.2. the Principal Chief Conservator of Forest, Tripura by his communication dated 2.1.1992 informed the petitioner that though her seniority position in the post of Lower Division Clerk was determined, her case for promotion, according to the Government decision, to the post of U.D.C. could not be considered against the Scheduled Tribe quota as she belonged to Laskar community. It may be noticed herein that the Government of Tripura by Memorandum dated 30.3.1989 declared that the members of the Laskar community did not belong to Scheduled Tribe of Tripura, Against the said communication the petitioner again represented on 22.8.92 before the respondent No.2 praying for her Dromotion to the post of U.D.C. with effect from 17.12.1987. Thereafter, another representation has been preferred to the Chief Secretary, Forest Department, Government of Tripura, Agartala on 15-9-1993 by the petitioner making the same grievance. Having failed to mitigate her suffer-ings, the petitioner has approached this Court.

(3.) I have heard Mr. C.S. Sinha, learned counsel for the petitioner and also Mr. U.B. Saha, learned Senior Government Advocate, assisted by Mr. S. Chakraborty, learned counsel for the State respondents.