Judgment :-

K.S. Radhakrishnan, J.

Leave granted.

2. We are in this case concerned with the question whether the Chief Commissioner has got the powers to order regularization of promotion and identification of eligible posts in a cadre, in the Department of erstwhile Telecommunications, while exercising powers under Section 59 of the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995 (for short ‘the Act of 1995).

3. The Respondent was appointed as a Lower Division Clerk on compassionate ground in relaxation of normal recruitment rules, including upper age limit and typing test, in the Post Master General’s Office Trivandrum on 23.01.1973 in the PMT Department, which was later bifurcated into Departments of Posts and Telecommunications.

The Respondent then opted for Telecommunications Department. Nomenclature of posts of Lower Division Clerk/Upper Division Clerk/Office Superintendent (LDC/UDC/OS in short) was changed as Telecom Operating Assistants in the Telecom Department. Telecom Office Assistant (TOA in short) Grade-I included LDC/UDC/OS, Grade-II included Section supervisors, Grade-III included Senior Section Supervisors, Grade-IV included Chief Section Supervisors. The above categorization was done w.e.f 09.09.1992. The Respondent was later promoted as ad hoc UDC w.e.f. 1977 and was promoted as UDC on regular basis w.e.f. 04.11.1982 on seniority-cum-fitness quota. Later he was placed as TOA Grade-II (Section Supervisor) w.e.f. 09.09.1992. The Respondent was again promoted as TOA Grade-III (Senior Section Supervisor), w.e.f. 01.07.1999.

4. The Respondent then applied for promotion under the physically handicapped person’s quota after availing all facilities of restructured Cadre on the basis of the OM No.36035/8/89-Estt.(SCT) dated 20.11.1989, which was considered and rejected by BSNL on the ground that no relaxation/reservation in promotion was permissible under schemes for physically handicapped persons as in the case of Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe (SC/ST in short) officials. Further, it was also noticed that the respondent’s appointment was not under physically handicapped quota. The Respondent, aggrieved by the rejection order passed by the BSNL filed a complaint before the Commissioner, praying that he should be given promotion to the post of Lower Selection Grade (LSG in short) (Section Supervisors) retrospectively w.e.f. 20.11.1989 and to the upgraded clerical posts of TOA Grade-III (Senior Section Supervisors) and TOA Grade-IV (Chief Section Supervisors) w.e.f. 07.02.1996. The Chief Commissioner entertained the complaint and registered case No.1109/2001 under Section 59 of the Act of 1995. The Commissioner after hearing parties and examining various contentions passed the following order on 26.12.2002. The operative portion of the same reads as under:

“The respondents are, therefore, directed to include the TOA cadre which is required to do clerical work and other such jobs in the list of identified jobs issued by Department of Telecommunications vide their letter No.1-8/2001/AO(SNG) dated 18.10.01 to be inconformity with the list of identified jobs published in the Gazette notification No.178 dated 30.06.2001 referred to above. Upon identification of the cadre for PH persons, the respondents are directed to prepare a 100 point reservation register for PH persons as required under the existing instructions of Department of Personnel & Training/Department of Telecommunications and to consider the claim of the complainant for promotion under reserved vacancies for the grade(s) if he becomes eligible as a PH person against reserved vacancies.”

5. BSNL, aggrieved by the above-mentioned order approached the Kerala High Court by filing Writ Petition No.30816 of 2003 which was dismissed by a learned Single Judge vide order dated 19.02.2007, ordering that the benefit of LSG cadr