SASHILA LONGKUMER Vs. STATE OF NAGALAND

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This writ appeal is preferred against the common Judgment& Order dtd. 11/8/2022 passed in WP(C) No. 85/2016 and other analogous petitions, by which the learned Single Judge was pleased to reject the grievance of the appellant/petitioner along with other similarly situated persons, mainly on the ground of delay and laches in approaching the Court to ventilate their grievances. The appellant however has confined the challenge to the said Judgment and Order only in respect of three prayers i.e., prayer Nos. 10, 13 and 14 of the writ petition. The appellant/petitioner had challenged the order dtd. 4/10/2013 passed by the DGP, Nagaland by which 50 numbers of ASIs including the petitioner were declared to have passed the Central Promotion Test and were kept in the Fit List for promotion to the posts of Unarmed Branch Sub-Inspector on the ground that she was eligible for promotion by way of her placement in the Fit List way back in 2008. The appellant had also challenged the impugned order dtd. 30/3/2015 by which respondent No. 7 was promoted to the rank of UBSI instead of the petitioner. The appellant had further prayed for her promotion to the rank of UBSI by giving retrospective effect. The said three prayers are reproduced below:

(2.) The petitioner was appointed on 3/12/1988 on the recommendation of the Selection Board along with 8 others as Assistant Sub-Inspector (Female) by the Director General of Police, Nagaland, Kohima. The seniority of all the Assistant Sub-Inspectors were stated to be in order of their placement in the Appointment Order as per recommendation of the Selection Board. The petitioner was placed at Serial No. 4 whereas the respondent No. 7 was placed at Serial No. 8 in the said List.

(3.) Thereafter, on 28/9/2007 by an Office Memorandum, the final seniority list of the ASI was published wherein, the appellant/petitioner was placed at Serial No. 8 and the respondent No. 7 was placed at Serial No. 16. Subsequent thereto, on 5/2/2008, the petitioner/appellant along with 9 other ASIs were sent for Central Promotion Test (CPT) for promotion to the rank of UBSI. The petitioner qualified in the said Test along with others and the DGP, Nagaland on the recommendation of the Selection Board promoted the senior most ASIs to the rank of UBSI keeping the petitioner/appellant along with others in the Fit List for promotion to the rank of UBSI. The appellant was kept in Serial No. 5 of the said Fit List. Thereafter, the first 2 ASIs enlisted in the Fit List were promoted to the rank of UBSI on 24/10/2008 and 1/4/2011 respectively. In the said Fit List the name of the respondent No. 7 was not present.