The main legal point established in the judgment is that promotions granted based on the O.M. dated 03.05.2012, which extended the Select List Year 2003 of UDCs, indicated a fair method of filling up posts. The court also emphasized that retrospective seniority cannot be given to a promotee so as to affect the seniority rights of an existing member of a cadre.

JUDGMENT

Suresh Kumar Kait, J. The above captioned first and second petitions [W.P.(C) 5259/2019 & W.P.(C) 8454/2019] have been preferred by the petitioners seeking issuance of a writ of certiorari for quashing of order dated 09.01.2019 in O.A.639/2016 passed by the learned Central Administrative Tribunal, Principal Branch, New Delhi (henceforth referred to as the "Tribunal").

2. The above captioned third petition [W.P.(C) 8616/2019] has been preferred by petitioner-Union of India seeking quashing of order dated 09.01.2019 in O.A. 4700/2015 passed by CAT.

3. Since challenge in these petitions is to common impugned order dated 09.01.2019 passed by the Tribunal, therefore, with the consent of learned counsel for the parties, these petitions were heard together and are being disposed of by this common judgment.

4. The background of these petitions, as spelt out in W.P.(C) 5259/2019, is that Central Secretariat Clerical Service (`CSCS.) in the Central Secretariat has two grades of posts viz. Junior Secretariat Assistant (JSA) and Senior Secretariat Assistant (SSA) and is governed by CSCS Rules, 1962. That is the only feeder cadre for Central Secretariat Service (`CSS.) which includes the post of Assistant Section Officer, Section Officer, Under Secretary, Deputy Secretary and Director; they are governed by CSS Rules, 2009. A separate cadre unit has been constituted in respect of both services i.e. CSCS and CSS for each Ministry of Government of India and DOPT is the Cadre Controlling Authority in respect of them.

5. Prior to implementation of the recommendation of First Cadre Restructuring Committee of CSS, 85% of JSAs inducted in Select List of every year were recruited through Staff Selection Commission on all India basis and top rankers in the examination were posted in the Central Secretariat as erstwhile Lower Divisional Clerks (LDC). Direct recruitment for this post had been stopped for the Select List 2000 onward vide DoPT O.M. dated No.9/2/2003-CS-II dated 20.04.2005.

6. The promotions are made in Central Secretariat Services each year through Select List and as per rules, the Select List for a year consists of the vacancies arising during the period from 1st July of that year to 30th June of the following year. The promotional post for JSA of Central Secretariat Clerical Service is the post of SSA which is filled up by two modes of promotion viz 75% by seniority-cum-fitness from eligible JSAs having 8 years of approved service in the post and 25% from JSAs having rendered 5 years of services in the post through Limited Departmental Competitive Examination (LDCE).

7. It is further averred in the petition that Government of India constituted a Committee in 2001 which submitted their report in February, 2002. This was the first such committee who made recommendations for restructuring of the cadre of CSS including its feeder cadre of CSCS. Pursuant to the recommendations of the Committee and with approval of cabinet as well as DoPT, new posts in Central Secretariat Services were added in the total sanctioned strength of Director, Deputy Secretary, Under Secretary and Section Officer of CSS, which were considered from the select list of 2003 and promotions in all the aforesaid Grades were made from time to time between 2005 to 2009 from the said Select List of the year 2003.

8. Thereafter, the Government of India constituted another committee in April, 2009 to ascertain the exact vacancies arising against Select List Year of the 2003 in the erstwhile Assistant Grade. According to the committee, there existed 2151 (1469 chain of vacancies percolated down from promotions in higher posts and 682 vacancies restored) vacancies and it recommended to fill up these vacancies. The DoPT filled up these 2151 vacancies from eligible erstwhile UDC out of the Select List of 2003. Thereafter, the Unions requested to DoPT to fill up the 2151 chain vacancies to the grade of UDC from the erstwhile stagnating LDCs as per Select List of th