S. GURDEV SINGH AND ORS. Vs. UNION OF INDIA THROUGH SECRETARY, MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS, NEW DELHI & OTHERS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioners have filed this petition for a direction to be issued to the respondents 1 to 4 to treat them as Assistants, w. e. f. 22-2-1960, and declare them entitled to all consequential benefits arising therefrom, and further prayed for a declaration that they are senior to the respondents 5 to 16 and that the seniority list, dated 25-11-1970 may be ordered to be quashed, and further that the respondents 1 to 3 be directed to indicate the names of the petitioners at serial Nos. 9 and 10, below Shri B.K. Prabhakar and above Shri Makhan Lal Kapoor.

(2.) The petitioners were clerks in the Public Works Department of the State of Punjab till the 22nd Feb., 1960, when they were promoted along with five others as Assistants. They worked as such till 31-3-1963, when they were reverted under the National Emergency Scheme prepared for effecting economy in the expenditure. In that scheme it had been provided that the reversions and retrenchments, which may be necessary as a result of the reduction in the strength of the staff, should be carried out strictly on the basis of seniority, namely, the junior-most person in any particular organisation should be reverted or considered surplus. It was provided further in the scheme that no reduction will, however, be made in the case of members of the scheduled castes, scheduled tribes and backward classes in pursuance of the economy measures. After the reversion of the petitioners and others, the question arose as to how the seniority is to be computed in case the reverted officials are again promoted. Hence on 22-11-1963, the erstwhile Punjab Government decided that so far as the seniority of the officials, who had to be reverted because of the economy cut employed by the Government is concerned, they should rank senior to the members belonging to the scheduled caste/scheduled tribe and backward classes, who were allowed protection and should be restored their seniority on subsequent promotion. At the time of reversion, Shri Mohan Lal Bharat at serial No 5 (of annexure A) who was admittedly junior to the petitioners, who stood at serial Nos. 1 and 2, was not reverted because he was a member of the scheduled caste. The decision of the Government to restore the original seniority to the retrenched employees on re-promotion as taken vide Annexure D, dated 22-11-1963 was further reaffirmed by an order, dated 28-5-1966 (Annexure E). It had been decided that the break in service of the employees, who were reverted as a result of the emergency and were subsequently re-appointed in their parent department, should be condoned. Because of the policy decision, the petitioners had to work from 1st April, 1963 to 15th Dec., 1965, as clerk and on 16th Dec., 1965, they were promoted as Assistant, vide Annexure F, so, on their promotion they started agitating that in view of the policy decision of the Government, contained in Annexures C, D and E, they should be deemed to have been appointed as Assistants with effect from 22 2-1960 and for the purpose of seniority, the said date be treated as the date of their promotion to the posts of Assistants. On 1-7-1966, a seniority list was prepared. The petitioners 1 and 2 were indicated at Nos. 59 and 60 respectively. In that list the date of appointment of the petitioners as Assistants was indicated as 16-12-1965. Since it was Incorrect, a corrigendum was issued on 20th Oct., 1966 (Annexure J-1).

(3.) On 1-11-1966, consequent to the reorganisation of the erstwhile State of Punjab, the petitioners were provisionally allocated to Himachal Pradesh. They made representations for their re-allocation to Punjab, but those were rejected and they were finally allocated to Himachal Pradesh on 15-6-1970, w.e.f 1-11-1966. After this the petitioners started raking up their cases of seniority on she basis of the Annexures C, D and E to be considered to have been appointed as Assistants w.e.f. 22-2-1960. Their representations. Annexures K. and K-l, were sent to the Punjab Public Works Department (Chief Engineer) vide Annexure L, but no decision was communicated to them respite of repeated reminders, Annexures K-2 to K-7. On 25-11-1970, the respondent No.3 circulated an incorrect list of seniority of Assistants working in the office of the Chief Engineer as it stood on 1-11-1966. The names of the petitioners were shown on that list at serial Nos. 21 and 22 respectively on the basis that they were promoted as Assistants on 16-12-1965.