THE STATE OF PUNJAB Vs. JAGDISH KUMAR KAPOOR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The writ petition filed by Mr. Jagdish Kumar Kapoor having been allowed, the State of Punjab and the private respondents have filed these two Letters Patent Appeals. A few facts as relevant for the decision of these appeals my be briefly noticed.

(2.) The writ petitioner now (respondent No. 1) had joined service as a Junior Scale Stenographer in December 1960. On January 11, 1967, he was promoted as a Personal Assistant. On November 24, 1980, he was promoted as a Private Secretary on a purely ad hoc basis and subject to approval by the Public Service Commission. The Government had forwarded the case to the Commission. However, the Commission took the view that the official was not suitable for promotion as his integrity had been found to be doubtful in the report for the year 1975-76. The Commission having declined to grant approval, the first respondent was ordered to be reverted as a Personal Assistant vide order dated October 13, 1983. Thereafter, the respondent was again promoted as a Private Secretary on May 6, 1985. Having got this promotion, he submitted a representation dated June 19, 1986, a copy of which has been produced on record as Annexure P.5, by which he requested the authorities to give him regular promotion with effect from April 1, 1981. This was followed by another representation dated March 13, 1990. A copy of the second representation has been produced as Annexure P.6 on the record. The Government conveyed its decision vide letter dated August 16, 1990 and rejected the representations. Thereafter, the first respondent filed the writ petition with the prayer for the issue of a writ of certiorari to quash the order dated August 16, 1990. He also prayed that a mandamus be issued directing the respondents to grant him seniority as a Private Secretary with effect from October 22, 1981.

(3.) The claim as made out in the writ petition was controverted. It was pointed out that in view of the report for the year 1975-76, the action of the authorities was legal and valid.