Allowed

Harvindra Singh v. Uttarakhand Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd. and Others

Uttarakhand HC14 Nov 2014WPSS/588/2014

Case brief

AI extract

What is this about?

The petitioner, an Office Assistant absorbed into a junior cadre, challenged an inter-se seniority list. The court allowed the petition relying on precedents granting seniority protection to similar employees, directing that the pension be calculated from the parent department date, but exempting already-promoted employees from disturbance.

What did the court decide?

Petitioner's seniority to be calculated from date of joining; promotion of already promoted staff not to be disturbed.

Harvindra Singh Vs Uttarakhand Jal… — Pension and Retirement Benefits | Uttarakhand HC (2014)

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IN THE HIGH COURT OF UTTARAKHAND AT NAINITAL Writ Petition (S/S) No. 588 of 2014

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Harvindra Singh … Petitioner

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Versus

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Uttarakhand Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd. & others … Respondents

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Mr. Kishore Kumar, Advocate, present for the petitioner. Mr. Vinay Kumar, Advocate, present for the respondent nos. 1 to 3. Mr. Rajendra Dobhal, Senior Advocate, assisted by Mr. Tarun Lakhera, Advocate, present for the respondent no. 9.

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Hon’ble Sudhanshu Dhulia, J. (Oral)

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Counter affidavit filed today in the Court on behalf of respondent Nos. 1 to 3 is taken on record.

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The petitioner is an Office Assistant-III in the Accounts Cadre in the Government Corporation, which is known as “Uttarakhand Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited” ( hereinafter referred to as “Corporation” ). The parent cadre of the petitioner earlier was general. However, since the Corporation was short of employees in the Accounts Cadre, an order was passed by the appropriate authority in the Corporation on 10.08.2004 inviting applications from employees in the General Cadre for transfer/absorption in the Accounts Cadre. It was clearly provided in the said order that their seniority in the parent department, will be protected in the Accounts Cadre. Consequent to the said offer on 10.08.2004 many of the employees sought their transfer/absorption in the Accounts Cadre. Thereafter, second order of the same nature came in the year 2005. The said order was with the same terms and conditions of protection of seniority. Some of the employees opted again and transferred/absorbed in the Corporation. However, the last date of option was extended by the department.

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Admittedly, the earlier employees of General Cadre applied after the last date, but that is of little relevance at the moment as the candidature of the petitioner was accepted by the department and transferred/absorbed in the Accounts Cadre. It is again an admitted case that the petitioner was also absorbed in Accounts Cadre on the same terms and conditions, as the previous employees were transferred/absorbed.

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There were some disputes between the employees, who had given choice in the first option and these employees who had offered their option in second offer. This Court in a similar matter in WPSS No. 178 of 2009 (G.R. Mamgain Vs Uttarakhand Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd. & others decided on 13.03.2013) had held that the employees, who had opted in reference to the second offer, were also liable to be given the same seniority protection, as was given earlier. The said petitioner (G.R. Mamgain) again challenged the seniority list issued by the authority concerned in WPSS No. 1055 of 2013 in which this Court directs the respondents to prepare a fresh seniority list in terms of the judgment and order dated 13.03.2013 (referred above).

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This Court has been informed that no appeal has been filed against the said order. Therefore, the said order as of now reached to its finality. The petitioner is also an employee, who is similarly situated as that of G.R. Mamgain (in WPSS No. 178/2009), and is aggrieved by the inter se seniority dated 23.06.2008.

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A preliminary objection has been raised by Mr. Vinay Kumar, counsel for the Nigam that the petitioner is nothing but a fence sitter. He did not approach this Court

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in time as did the other petitioner in WPSS No. 178 of 2009 and now when a favourable order has been passed in other cases, he being a fence sitter has now moved a representation before the authority and since it has not been decided in his favour, he has preferred the present writ petition before this Court.

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It is undoubtedly true that the petitioner has not approached this Court in time. Yet the fact remains that the action of the respondents whereby the rightful seniority was being denied to its employees, has been held to be wrong. This writ petition also deserves to be allowed in terms of the aforesaid judgments passed in WPSS No. 178 of 2009 (decided on 13.03.2013) and WPSS No. 1055 of 2013 (decided on 30.08.2013) with one exception. Though, petitioner’s seniority shall be calculated from the date of joining of his parent department i.e. General Cadre, nevertheless in case some employees in the Accounts Cadre have already been promoted to the next higher cadre and since the said promotion was never challenged before this Court by the petitioner prior to filing of the present writ petition, and most of them are also not before this Court, therefore, it would not be proper to disturb their seniority. However, the moment the petitioner too is promoted to the higher post he will regain his seniority.

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(Sudhanshu Dhulia, J.) 14.11.2014

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Ankit

Harvindra Singh v. Uttarakhand Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd. and Others

Case brief

What is this about?

What did the court decide?

Harvindra Singh v. Uttarakhand Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd. and Others

Case brief

What is this about?

What did the court decide?

What the court decided

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