Judgement

DUTT, J. :- These two writ petitions, being Writ Petitions Nos. 9847-48 of 1983, involve a dispute as to seniority between the two petitioners, K Madhavan and Santunu Sen, on the one hand and respondent 5, O. P. Sharma on the other. It may be recorded at the outset that although the petitioners have also challenged in the writ petitions the seniority of respondent 4, P.C. Srivastava, over the petitioners, at the hearing of the writ petitions the challenge to the seniority of respondent 4 has not been pressed on behalf of the petitioners inasmuch as respondent 4 is to retire from service within about two years from now. We would, accordingly, exclude from our consideration the seniority of respondent 4 which stands confirmed.

2. The two petitioners, Madhavan and Sen, were directly recruited as Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) in the Delhi Special Police Establishment (SPE) in the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on 6-7-1963 and 10-8-1963 respectively. Respondent 5, who was appointed to the post of DSP on 13-7-1962 in the Rajasthan State Police, was sent on deputation to CBI as DSP on 1-7-1967. It may be stated at this stage that majority of the officers in the CBI