IMPORTANT POINT
Service conditions from other organisations cannot be imported and relied upon to claim certain benefits.

JUDGMENT

Surinder Singh Nijjar, J. —

1. This appeal has been filed against the final judgment and order dated 12th April, 2004 passed by the High Court of Karnataka at Bangalore rendered in Civil Writ Petition No. 33496 of 2000(S-CAT) whereby the High Court set aside and quashed the order passed by the Central Administrative Tribunal, Bangalore, (‘CAT’ for short) dated 1st March, 2000 and held that the Accounts Department in the CAT does not fall within the ambit of ‘Organized Accounts Cadres’.

2. We may notice here the essential facts necessary for the adjudication of the present appeal. Unni Menon, appellant herein, joined the Indian Audit and Accounts Department as Upper Division Clerk w.e.f. 10th October, 1967. He thereafter cleared the SAS examination and was promoted as Section Officer, w.e.f. 24th October, 1973, in the office of Accountant General, Bangalore, Karnataka. The appellant was further promoted as Assistant Accounts Officer w.e.f. 1st April, 1987 by virtue of his seniority and merit.

3. While he was working as Assistant Accounts Officer in the office of the Accountant General, he went on deputation to work in the CAT, Bangalore Bench w.e.f. 21st August, 1989. As the appellant was on deputation, his lien was maintained in his parent department, i.e., Accountant General, Karnataka Circle, Bangalore. On the basis of his lien and seniority, he was promoted as Accounts Officer in his parent office, i.e., in office of the Accountant General, Bangalore, w.e.f. 1st April 1992. Thereafter, he was absorbed as Accounts Officer in the Central Administrative Tribunal w.e.f. 23rd March, 1994.

4. The IV Pay Commission made certain recommendations in the matter of pay scales between the Accounts Officers in the Accounts Wing and the Accounts Officers in the Audit Wing of the Indian Audit and Accounts Department. The relevant extract of the recommendations is as under :-

“There has all along been parity between the staff in the IA & AD and Accounts staff and other Departments which has been disturbed by restructuring of IA & AD into two separate cadres viz, Audit Cadre and Accounts and Establishment Cadre and giving higher pay scales to a major portion of staffs on the audit side. The audit and accounts functions are complementary to each other and are generally performed in many government offices in an integrated manner which is necessary for their effective functioning. The Staff in these offices perform functions of internal check and audit suited to the requirements of each organization which are equally important. There is direct recruitment in the scale of Rs. 330-560 in all the audit and accounts cadres through Staff Selection Commission, Railway Recruitment Boards from amongst University graduates. Therefore, in view of this, there should be board parity in the pay scales of the staff of IA & AD and other accounts organizations. Accordingly, it is recommended that the posts in the pay scale of Rs. 475-700 in the organized accounts cadres may be given the scale of Rs. 1400-2600.”

5. Pursuant to the recommendations of the IV Pay Commission, Government of India issued a circular vide No. F.6(82)/IC/91 dated 22nd September, 1992 giving promotional grade for Audit/Accounts Officers of ‘Organized Accounts Cadres’.

6. It is the case of the appellant that he should have been promoted to the cadre of Sr. Accounts Officer w.e.f. 1st April, 1995 on his completion of three years’ of service in the cadre of Accounts Officer in the scale of Rs. 2375 - 3500 pursuant to the aforesaid circular dated 22nd September, 1992. He further pointed out that the persons junior to him in his parent department had been promoted on completion of three years’ service. Since the nature of duties performed and responsibilities shouldered by him in CAT are identical or very similar to the duties and responsibilities in the parent cadre, he was entitled to parity in designation and pay with his counterparts in the Indian Audit & Accounts Department.

7.