The significance of the offer of appointment and the requirement for satisfactory completion of the probation period for confirmation.

JUDGMENT :

CHAKRADHARI SHARAN SINGH, J.

A judgment and order dated 19.02.2021 passed by a Division Bench of the Central Administrative Tribunal, Patna Bench, Patna, in OA/050/00836/2018 is under challenge in the present writ application, whereby the termination of the petitioner’s service by the respondents has been upheld and the petitioner’s application under Section 19 of the Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985, has been dismissed.

2. The relevant facts, which are not in dispute, are short. The petitioner was appointed as a temporary Cadet Orderly against the reserved vacancy of Other Backward Class in Officers Training Academy (OTA) at Gaya. The said appointment letter dated 08.01.2014 has been brought on record by way of Annexure-1 to the writ application. Clause 3(a) and 3(b) of the said offer of appointment are relevant for the present adjudication and are, therefore, being reproduced hereinbelow: -

“3. Your appointment is purely temporary and provisional subject to the provisions in accordance with the CCS (Temporary) Service Rules framed thereunder and amended from time to time and also such orders and directions as have been or may be issued of India from time to time. Your provisional appointment will be with effect from the date of your reporting to Officers Training Academy, Gaya based on this Offer letter and subject to followings:-

(a) You will be governed by normal rules for civilians.

(b) You will be on probation for a period of two years from the date of your appointment which may be extended for a further period not exceeding one year. During the period of probation, you will be liable to be discharged from service without assigning any reason by giving a notice of 30 years or pay and allowances in lieu thereof. On satisfactory completion of the period of probation, you will be considered for confirmation in that post.

xxx xxx xxx” (Underlined for emphasis)

3. There is an assessment report brought on record by way of annexure to the counter affidavit filed on behalf of the Union of India dated 27.11.2015 for the period 25.02.2014 to 31.03.2015, from which it appears that the petitioner was reported unfit for retention in service. There is another assessment report on record for the period 01.04.2015 to 31.03.2016, wherein the petitioner was found fit for retention. The fact, however, remains that no order was passed confirming the petitioner’s service on successful completion of the period of probation. The petitioner, however, continued in service. There is a third assessment report available on record for the period 01.04.2016 to 31.03.2017, which was brought on record by way of Annexure-R/5 to the written statement filed on behalf of the Union of India before the Tribunal which discloses that the petitioner was found unfit for retention.

4. Subsequently, the petitioner was communicated through a letter dated 23.06.2017 (Annexure-2 to the writ petition) issued by the Lieutenant-General at OTA, Gaya, terminating the services of the petitioner based on assessment of his service during the probationary period. It is evident from the said letter dated 23.06.2017 that the decision to terminate the petitioner’s service was taken by a confirmatory board based on assessment of petitioner’s service during the probationary period. The said communication dated 23.06.2017 clearly stipulated that the petitioner’s service would stand terminated upon completion of 30 days from the issuance of the notice.

5. The petitioner put to challenge the said notice dated 23.06.2017 by filing the aforementioned OA/050/00836/2018 mainly on the ground that his service stood impliedly confirmed on the lapse of the period of two years from the date of the initial appointment as there was no communication to the petitioner extending the period of probation. It was also the petitioner’s case that in terms of the offer of appointment, the period of probation could be extended for a further period but not exceeding one year. The extended period of o