RAJAN GANDHI Vs. ARAVALI KSHETRIYA GRAMIN BANK

JUDGEMENT

(1.) WHAT is required to be considered, while applying the principle of "seniority-cum-merit" for the purpose of promotion? This is the common question which falls for consideration in all these five writ petitions.

(2.) THE petitioners have been working on the post of Officer in the respondent Aravali Khestriya Gramin Bank. On October 5, 1993 seniority list of officers came to be published wherein the petitioners were assigned seniority as under: Ravindra Singh at Serial No. 1 Rajendra Mohan Sharma at Serial No. 2 Rajan Gandhi at Serial No. 3 Prakash Chandra at Serial No. 7 Ram Niwas Bairwa (SC) at Serial No. 30

(3.) BOARD of Directors of the respondent Bank in their meeting held on February 20, 1996 approved the procedure for making promotions against seven vacancies of Area/senior Manager wherein promotion to be made on the criterion of seniority-cum-merit by assigning marks as under- Seniority -30 Performance -40 Interview -30 Total -100 On March 14, 1996 a Circular was issued by the respondent Bank incorporating the aforesaid decision of the BOARD of Directors. In para 8 of the Circular it was prescribed that the marks so obtained on the basis of aforesaid applicable factors shall be aggregated and the final merit list shall be prepared in the descending order and the results declared. The competent authority shall make promotions from the merit list strictly in the order of merit to the extent of vacancies.