The Madurai Bench of Madras High Court dismissed a writ petition challenging an order omitting the petitioner from a promotion panel for Special Grade Foreman. The Court held that upon inter-circle transfer, the employee must be treated as the junior-most in the new division.
This page shows the compact analysis of this judgement. The full analysis — procedural history, issue-by-issue holdings with ratio and obiter, advocates, and paragraph-level evidence for every claim — is being added to the record in batches and will appear here when this judgement has been through it.
W.P.(MD)No.217 of 2019
BEFORE THE MADURAI BENCH OF MADRAS HIGH COURT
DATED: 03.04.2023
CORAM
THE HONOURABLE MRS.JUSTICE S.SRIMATHY
W.P.(MD)No.217 of 2019
and W.M.P.(MD)Nos. 167, 168 and 169 of 2019
R.Sankararaju ... Petitioner
Vs.
3.The Executive Engineer, (Distribution), Theni. ... Respondents
PRAYER: Writ Petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India for issuance of Writ of Certiorarified Mandamus , calling for the records relating to the impugned proceedings of the 2nd respondent in No.1352/MePo/Theni/NiA/NiP2/NiVu1/Ko.CiNiMu/2018-1 dated, 16.11.2018
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quash the same in so far as omitting the petitioner in the panel list of promotion to the post of Special Grade Foreman and consequently direct the respondents to place the petitioner in SI.No.6A of the panel list prepared by the respondents for inclusion in the panel for promotion to the post of Foreman Special Grade as per Board Proceedings dated 18.04.1986.
For Petitioner : Mr.K.Appadurai For Respondents : Mr.M.Parameswari, Standing Counsel
ORDER
This Writ Petition is filed challenging the, order dated 16.11.2018
with a consequential relief to place the petitioner in Sl.No.6A in the seniority list.
2. The brief facts as stated in the affidavit are that the petitioner
joined in the post of Field Assistant on 06.01.1988 at Vadamadurai Section in Dindigul District. Thereafter, promoted as Commercial Assistant on 01.08.1994 and transferred in the cadre of Commercial Assistant on 14.07.2004 in Theni circle. The claim of the petitioner is that his service in Dindigul circle as Commercial Assistant was on 01.08.1994 and the said date should be taken into
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account for fixing seniority in the Theni circle. Moreover, the guidelines that has
been issued for all these transfers will be applicable to the petitioner's case. The petitioner to substantiate his case has relied on transfer order. The relevant portion of the transfer order is extracted hereunder:
3. The respondents have filed a counter stating that the petitioner
ought to be fixed below one Radhakrishnan who was junior most in Theni circle and included in the promoted panel dated 21.11.2003. Therefore, the petitioner seniority has been kept on the right place. However, the petitioner is seeking to keep in between one Ravindran who is at Serial No.6 and Andavar, who is at Serial No.7, which is against the guidelines of the respondents Corporation. Hence, the petitioner's claim cannot be entertained and prayed to dismiss the writ petition.
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4. After hearing the rival submissions, this Court is of the considered
opinion that the petitioner has misconstrued the transfer order and is claiming he should be kept as Commercial Assistant by taking his date of joining in the Commercial Assistant post in Dindigul circle. The petitioner ought to read the paragraph 2 and 4 of the transfer order conjointly. In Paragraph 2, it is clearly stated that since the petitioner is being transferred on his own request, the petitioner is not entitled to any travelling allowances. Also, in paragraph 4 it is clearly stated that the petitioner’s seniority for Commercial Assistant post would
be fixed by taking the date of joining in transferred division by following the guidelines. On conjointly reading of paragraph 2 and 4 along with the guidelines, it would be clear that the petitioner would be kept as junior most person in the transferred division and hence the petitioner has been rightly kept below one Radhakrishnan, who was junior most in Theni circle. The petitioner's claim is totally against the service jurisprudence. If an employee transferred from one Unit to another Unit or from one circle to another circle, then the employee should be placed as junior most in the transferred circle in the cadre of post which they are holding. Therefore, the claim of the petitioner is totally against such rule and hence the writ petition is liable to be dismissed.
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W.P.(MD)No.217 of 2019
`
` 5. In view of the above, this Writ Petition is dismissed. There shall
be no order as to costs. Consequently, connected miscellaneous petitions are closed.
Index : Yes / No 03.04.2023 Internet : Yes ksa
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W.P.(MD)No.217 of 2019
S.SRIMATHY, J
ksa
Order made in W.P.(MD)No. 217 of 2019
03.04.2023
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2 issues framed by the court
Whether the petitioner is entitled to seniority reckoning from the date of joining in Dindigul circle instead of the transferred division.
Whether the petitioner can be placed in between specific serial numbers in the panel list against the service guidelines.
R.Sankararaju
The Chief Engineer, Personnel, TANGEDCO, Chennai
The Superintending Engineer, TANGEDCO, Theni Distribution Circle, Theni
The Executive Engineer, (Distribution), Theni
S.Sr maternity
As recorded by the court registry
Judgements on the same questions, provisions and authorities, from every court
