Retrospective seniority cannot be granted to an employee from a date when they were not even in the cadre, and seniority amongst members of the same grade must be counted from the date of their initial entry into the grade.

J.B PARDIWALA, J.

Since the issues raised in both the captioned applications are more or less the same, and the impugned orders passed by the Tribunal are also on the same footing, those were heard analogously and are being disposed of by this common judgment and order.

2. The two applications are filed by the Bhavnagar University under Article 227 of the Constitution of India, calling in question the legality and validity of the orders passed by the Gujarat Universities Services Tribunal dated 14th November, 2000 in the Application No. 18 of 1998 and the order dated 15th December, 2000 passed in the Application No. 19 of 1998 respectively. By the two impugned orders, the Tribunal took the view that the services rendered by a typist cum clerk in the feeder cadre of the typist is required to be taken into consideration for the purpose of fixing the seniority in the cadre of the “typist cum clerk”, “junior clerk-assistant.”

3. The sum and substance of the impugned orders is that the services rendered by the private respondents herein in the cadre of typist between 1st November, 1979 and 1st February, 1984 should be taken into consideration while determining their seniority in the higher cadre of the “typist cum clerk”, “junior clerk-assistant”. Being dissatisfied with the two orders passed by the Tribunal, the University has come up with the two applications, invoking the supervisory jurisdiction of this Court under Article 227 of the Constitution of India.

4. Having heard the learned counsel appearing for the parties and having considered the materials on record, the only question that falls for my consideration is whether the Tribunal committed any error in passing the impugned orders.

5. I take notice of the fact that the cadre of the typist and the cadre of the typist cum clerk are distinct and different. This is evident from the statement which is at page-60, Annexure-E of the Special Civil Application No. 976 of 2001, showing the qualifications and experience of the administrative posts (recruitment rules).

6. The qualification for the post of the typist is S.S.C passed with the Gujarati (Higher Level) and speed of 40 and 25 words per minute in English.

7. The two private respondents were earlier appointed by the Saurashtra University. They came to be transferred to the Bhavnagar University under the notification dated 24th May, 1979. The office order dated 31st January, 1984 passed by the Registrar of the Bhavnagar University, creating the cadre of the typist cum clerk reads as under;

“The Cadre of Typist cum Clerk has been created in Bhavnagar University and it is decided that a typist who is graduate is to be appointed on this post of typist cum clerk and to appoint following three typists who are in the University service and graduates as typist cum clerk, three posts of typists have been converted into the posts of typist cum clerk and the following three typists are appointed on the posts of typist cum clerk w.e.f 1.2.84, they will have to carry out whatever work is entrusted to them as typist cum clerk from time to time. Their pay, pay scales and other benefits which they are getting as typists are thereby protected.

The Cadres of Junior Clerk and Typist cum Clerk will be created as equivalent and following three employees may be encluded in the seniority list of junior Clerk w.e.f 1.2.84 Their Seniority in the common cadre will be considered w.e.f 1.2.84 Their Services as typist will not be considered for the purpose of this Seniority.”

8. The channel of promotion is that the cadre of the junior clerk is the feeder cadre for the cadre of the senior clerk and the cadre of the senior clerk is the feeder cadre for the cadre of the head clerk. Rule 7 G & H reads as under;

“(G) Seniority of respective cadres shall be finalized on the of date of joining the respective cadres in the University office but, is two or more employees have joined the respective cadre on the same day. Then the person who has joined in the morning s