GOPENDRA KUMAR MALAKAR Vs. STATE OF TRIPURA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The bone of contention in the writ application pertains to the computation of the period of service rendered by the petitioner, Shri Gopendra Kumar Malakar, as Superintending Engineer with effect from 15.3.88 till he was regularised as such on and from 10.9.93, which as per the pleadings has arisen in the following circumstances.

(2.) The petitioner first entered into Government service under the Public Works Department (PWD in short) as Overseer on 3.3.70. The petitioner was thereafter promoted and appointed as Asstt. Engineer under the respondent No.1, the State of Tripura, with effect from 24.10.72, thereafter, he was promoted to the post of Executive Engineer on 31.5.78 and was regularised as such with effect from 24.3.81. The petitioner was then promoted as Superintending Engineer (Civil) on ad hoc basis with effect from 15.3.88 and finally was appointed as Superintending Engineer (SE in short) on promotion in the Tripura Engineering Service (TES) Grade III on regular basis with effect from 10.9.93. Then the petitioner knocked the door of this Court seeking for an appropriate direction for regularisation of the aforesaid period of his service and to issue a direction regularising his service as SE (Civil) with effect from 15.10.88 with all the attending service benefits from that date as such officer. According to the petitioner, since his initial appointment was made by the authority upon considering all aspects of the matter taking into account the claim of other eligible persons and was appointed to the aforesaid permanent post allowing him to work as such SE (Civil) uninterruptedly, the period mentioned above is required to be considered for all practical purpose as a regularly appointed incumbent in the post of SE. The petitioner also cited instances of some officers of the Department who were initially appointed on ad hoc basis like him, but when such appointees/promotees were regularised, they were conferred with the benefits of a regularly appointed person from the date of their initial appointment to the post. The petitioner mentioned the names of Shri Bimal Chakraborty, Shri Kanailal Das, Shri Ranjit Lodh, Shri AK Gupta and Shri AK Debnath, who were given similar benefits. The petitioner accordingly moved the authority for such a direction and failing to get the relief, has moved this Court by way of this writ petition seeking appropriate reliefs.

(3.) The respondent No. 1, State of Tripura as well as respondent No.2, Tripura Public Service Commission (TPSC) in short), both contested the claim of the petitioner and filed their respective affidavits. According to the State/respondent No.1, till the petitioner was regularly appointed to the post of SE vide order dated 10th September, 1996 on a regular basis, the petitioner was only holding the post as an ad hoc measure on ad hoc basis and that the petitioner became a full-fledged SE only after regularisation of his service as such. In the affidavit, the respondent stated that the case of the petitioner could not be taken-up for consideration for regularisation in view of the fact that Shri K.N. Das, an Executive Engineer who was the immediate senior to the petitioner in the category of Scheduled Caste candidates could not be promoted due to the pendency of a vigilance case and accordingly, the petitioner was appointed on ad hoc basis on 15.10.88 as the SE (Civil) on administrative exigency to overcome the situation. The respondent No. 1 stated that in its affidavit in paragraph 3 (three) that "At the time of filling up the post of Superintending Engineer on ad- hoc basis on 15.10.1988, the matter was so urgent that the matter could not be placed before the Departmental Promotion Committee for filling up the post on regular basis as some statutory formalities were required to be placed before the Departmental Promotion Committee for consideration with regard to the filling up of the post of Superintending Engineer on regular basis".