CHAM CHUN NAHAR AHMED Vs. GAUHATI HIGH COURT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The writ jurisdiction of this Court has been sought to be invoked by the petitioners by questioning the legality and validity of initially the officiating arrangement of the private respondent no. 5 as the Secretary to the Hon'ble the Chief Justice of this Court (hereinafter HCJ) and the subsequent order of regularization of the services of the respondent no. 5 in the said capacity. The challenge is mainly based upon the lack of eligibility and qualification of the said respondent no. 5 in both the aforesaid processes.

(2.) Before going to the issue which has arisen for determination in these cases, it would be convenient to state the facts in brief.

(3.) In the first writ petition, registered as WP(C)/1376/2019, there are 9 numbers of petitioners, who at the time of filing of the writ petition were serving as Administrative Officers (Judicial) in the Principal Seat of this Court. Such service was in substantive capacity which they have reached from the post of LDA which they were earlier holding on the strength of their selection in the period 1988 to 1997. It is the case of the petitioners that the post of Administrative Officer (Judicial) is one of the feeder post for Secretary to the HCJ as per the Rules holding the field. There is no dispute that the concerned Rules are the Gauhati High Court (Service) Rules, 1967 (hereinafter the Rules). The respondent no. 5 was appointed as a Lower Divisional Assistant in the Gauhati High Court on 13/12/2004 and thereafter, was promoted to the cadre of Senior Judicial Assistant (SJA) which he is holding in a substantive capacity. The said post of SJA is in the feeder cadre to the post of Administrative Officers (Judicial), which the petitioners were holding. On 25/11/2016, the respondent no. 5 was appointed as Protocol Officer temporarily. Thereafter, vide an order dtd. 10/9/2018, the said respondent no. 5 was appointed as Secretary to the HCJ on officiating basis. In both the orders of promotion, it was, however recorded that the respondent no. 5 shall maintain his seniority in the original cadre, i.e. Senior Judicial Assistant and his future promotion will be made on that basis. The aforesaid order dtd. 10/9/2018 is the subject matter of challenge in the first writ petition WP(C)/1376/2019.