P N MISTRY Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) ON being selected by the Rajasthan Public Service Commission, the petitioner joined the services of the State of Rajasthan (the State) as Civil Assistant Surgeon (C. A. S.) on 11. 5. 57. He was confirmed on that post w. e. f. 11. 5. 58. While in service, the petitioner obtained his post graduate degree in Orthopaedics in May 1966 and on 13. 2. 67 he was appointed as C. A. S. cum Tutor in the Medical College, Jodhpur in pursuance of the order dated 30. 1. 67 (Annx. 7 ).

(2.) IN the year 1975, two posts of Junior Specialists in Orthopaedics were required to be filled in on officiating basis. A list of eligible candidates was prepared by the Director of Health Service under sub rule (2) of rule 24 of the Rajasthan Medical and Health Service Rules, 1963 (the rules), but the name of the appellant who was senior to doctors J. S. Dhaka and S. B. Jain (respondents no. 2 and 3 respectively) was not included in the list. The list was submitted to the Departmental Promotion Committee (D. P. C.) on whose recommendations, respondents no. 2 and 3 were appointed again those posts on officiating basis in terms of order dated 9. 7. 1975 (Anx. 1) IN the year 1976 doctors V. K. Chaturvedi and K. K. R. Sharma (respondents no. 4 and 5 respectively) were directly recruited to the two available posts of Junior Specialists (Orthopaedics), vide order dated 30 4. 79 (Anx. 2) the petitioner was promoted as Junior Specialists (Orthopaedics) and was posted as such against a clear vacancy in Ganganagar Hospital, Ganganagar. The State created a post of Senior Specialist (Orthopaedics) vide order dated 31. 5. 79. The petitioner learnt that the State was contemplating to promote the respondent no. 2 to the said post without considering his case and consequently the petitioner approached this Court by filing a Writ Petition on 3. 9. 79 challenging the appointments of respondents no 2 and 3 on officiating basis as Junior Specialists in the year 1975 and also challenging the recruitment of respondents no. 3 and 4 against the said posts in the year 1976. , and claiming to be entitled to be promoted as Junior Specialist in the vacancies of 1975 and 1976 and further to be entitled to be considered for the post of Senior Specialist created by the State. He prayed for all the consequential benefits of seniority, emoluments, promotion etc and prayed that the State be restrained from promoting any of the respondents to the post of Senior Specialist in supersession of the petitioner.

(3.) INITIALLY the learned Govt. Advocate contended that the petitioner had been absorbed in the collegiate branch and as such was not entitled to be promoted to the posts concerned, which are meant for the officers who are in the cadre of hospital branch. This argument was most un-impressive in view of the fact that during the pendency of the petition, the petitioner too had been promoted as senior Specialist in the hospital line. However, at the request of the learned Govt. Advocate, he was granted time to produce any document to show that the petitioner had been absorbed in the collegiate branch and had lost his lien in the cadre of officers working in the hospital side. The learned Govt. Advocate failed to produce any such document and thereafter did not press this arguments any further.