RAMESH CHANDRA ROY Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) ORIGINALLY the petitioner has filed the present application for quashing the notification issued by the Building Construction and Housing Department (hereinafter referred to as the Housing Department) dated 17.3.1997 and the consequential order passed by the Managing Director of the Bihar State Housing Board (hereinafter referred to as the Board) dated 28.3.1997 issued under the signature of the Secretary of the Board by which Deo Sunder Paswan (respondent no. 3) has been posted as Incharge Chief Engineer of the Board and to promote the petitioner to the post of Chief Engineer of the Board in the light of the direction issued by this Court vide order dated 6.1.1997 passed in CWJC No. 11299 of 1994. True copies of the aforesaid orders have been annexed as Annexure 1 & 2 respectively. Subsequently, by filing supplementary affidavit on 26.6.1997 the petitioner has made a prayer to quash the orders contained in Annexure -B dated 1.3.1997 by which the Committee of the Bihar Public Service Commission found the petitioner fit for promotion to the post of Superintending Engineer w.e.f. 10.2.1995 provided he is exonerated in the departmental proceedings initiated vide departmental letters no. 125/84/1530 dated 6.11.1990 and memo no. 720 dated 3.4.1997 (Annexure -E).

(2.) BEFORE stating the respective stands taken by the parties, I will state the facts which are not in dispute. In the year, 1964 the Public Service Commission recommended the name of the petitioner for appointment to the post of Engineer and on the basis of which on 25.7.1964 the petitioner was appointed as Assistant Engineer in the Housing Department and in pursuance of that he joined and he was confirmed on 18.8.1966, vide order issued on 27.11.1967. Two persons Narad Prasad Sinha and Anand Kumar Singh though recommended by the Commission alongwith the petitioner joined subsequently to the petitioner as an Assistant Engineer in the Housing Board. In 1971 aforesaid Narad Prasad Sinha and Anand Kumar Singh were promoted as Executive Engineer. The petitioner filed a writ application being CWJC No. 949 of 1971 for consideration of his case for promotion after quashing the promotion given to the aforesaid two persons to the post of Executive Engineer. The said writ application was finally disposed of on 6.5.1976. While the writ application was pending the petitioner was promoted as Executive Engineer Class I in June, 1975. This Court taking note of the aforesaid fact found that the only question of inter -se seniority between the petitioner and the aforesaid two persons was in controversy and accordingly this Court ordered that if any occasion arises in future for promotion of the petitioner or any of the aforesaid two persons the State Government would decide their inter -se seniority on consideration of the entire facts and circumstances relating to their cases and in accordance with the rules applicable to them before passing a final order of promotion of anyone of them. A copy of the said judgment has been annexed as Annexure -16 to the rejoinder filed by the petitioner to the counter affidavit of respondents on 27.6.1997.

(3.) IN 1972 the State of Bihar constituted the Bihar State Housing Board wherein the services of the petitioner and other officials were placed at the disposal of the Board in terms of the notification issued in this regard. The Board in its meeting dated 21.9.1972 created two posts of the Superintending Engineer which was approved by the State Government in the year 1974, out of which one post was reserved for the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe employee. From September, 1972 to December, 1972 Officers of the Public Works Department were posted on deputation on both the posts of Superintending Engineer as no officer of the Board was eligible for that post.