BHAGWAN PRASAD SINGH Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner has approached this court seeking a direction upon the respondents to promote him on the post of Circle Officer w.e.f., 1.7.1978. According to him on this date persons junior to him were considered and promoted on the said post. A further prayer has been made to grant him all consequential benefits including arrears of salary etc., upon grant of such promotion.

(2.) ACCORDING to the petitioner he was initially appointed on 15.12.1967 as Collection Peon on seasonal basis. Subsequently, he was considered and promoted as Tehsildar w.e.f., 10.10.1979. It has further been asserted that the seniority list of Collection Peons was prepared in which the petitioner 'sname figured at serial no. 70. According to the petitioner one Sri Jagdish Pd. Mehta was appointed on the post of Collection Peon in the Revenue Department on 15.1.1968 on Seasonal basis and immediately within a period of one year he was promoted to the post of Tehsildar w.e.f., 17.8.1968. Similarly, it has been stated that Sri Khurshid Alam Khan was appointed as Collection Peon on 15.1.1968 on seasonal basis and he was granted promotion to the post of Tehsildar within one year on 26.9.1968 and thereafter he was again considered and promoted to the post of Circle Officer on 1.7.1978. The petitioner has also stated that one Sri Abhay Narayan Jha was appointed on the post of Collection Peon on 15.1.1968 on seasonal basis and thereafter he was considered and promoted as Tehsildaron 17.6.1969. He was again promoted to the post of Circle Officer on 1.2.1978. On these grounds/facts it has been stated that the petitioner has valid claim to be considered and appointed as Circle Officer w.e.f., 1.2.1978 as persons junior to him have been considered and promoted by the respondents.

(3.) ACCORDING to the respondents, the statements/assertions of the petitioner are misconceived as those three persons belong to a different category and they cannot be compared with the case of the petitioner. According to the respondents aforesaid three persons were Moharrir having status of lllrd Grade Post and in pursuance of the Recruitment Rules of Tehsildars they were promoted/appointed on the post of Tehsildar in Purnea Revenue Division much prior to the petitioner and thereafter in terms of the criteria laid down in the Recruitment Rules of Jiladar/ Circle Officer their cases alongwith other eligible Tehsildars were considered by the Departmental Establishment Committee and those persons were found fit and, therefore, they were granted promotion as Circle Officer(s) on different dates in the year, 1978. The respondents have further asserted that so far as the case of the petitioner is concerned, he was initially appointed on the post of Collection Peon which is a IVth Grade Post in the year 1979. His case alongwith all other IVth Grade Employees of Purnea Revenue Division was considered by the Selection Committee and on the recommendation of the said Committee the petitioner was promoted/appointed on the post of Tehsildar in the year, 1979. It is further submitted that in the final seniority list of Tehsildar the seniority position of aforesaid three persons alongwith the petitioner are as follows: ''