FAROOQ AHMAD BHAT Vs. UNION TERRITORY OF J&K

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Aggrieved of the combined seniority list dtd. 22/2/2023, issued by the official respondents, the petitioners approached the Central Administrative Tribunal, Srinagar ('Tribunal' for short) by way of Original Application (OA) No. 336/2023, for quashment of the list as also prohibiting the official respondents from acting upon the said list. Alongside the OA, the petitioners preferred an application for temporary injunction and learned Tribunal passed an interim order on 10/5/2023, impugned in the present petition, which reads as below:

(2.) The petitioners have invoked writ jurisdiction of this Court, under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, to assail the aforesaid interim order passed by learned Tribunal, inter alia on the grounds that learned Tribunal has failed to appreciate that in the absence of Rules regarding maintenance of combined seniority list, it is the length of continuous service which is required to be adhered to. According to learned counsel for the petitioners, the impugned order passed by learned Tribunal, whereby respondents have been allowed to go ahead with the promotions to the post of Deputy Forester, having regard to the combined seniority list, in question, is in contravention of the provisions of the relevant statute and the Rules framed there under.

(3.) Heard learned counsels for the parties and perused the record.