The court emphasized the necessity of including all affected parties in seniority disputes, ruling that failure to do so violates procedural fairness.

JUDGMENT :

1. The petitioner entered the service of the 1^st respondent, Kerala Water Authority, as Lower Division Clerk on 14.07.2009 and was posted at its Head Office, Thiruvananthapuram. She was subsequently promoted to the post of Upper Division Clerk with effect from 09.10.2015.

2. Provisional seniority list of U.D. Clerks as on 01-11-2017 was published by the Chief Engineer (H.R.D. & General), the 3^rd respondent on 27-11-2017 vide Ext.P1 and calling for objections, if any. In Ext.P1, petitioner’s name figures at S. No.383. Going by Ext.P1, the reassigned date of promotion of the petitioner is 18.08.2011 which is against the resultant vacancy of one Sreelatha who was promoted with effect from 17.08.2011.

3. While so, Ext.P2, another provisional seniority list was published by the 3^rd respondent on 01.06.2019 without cancelling Ext.P1 list. In Ext.P2, the petitioner is placed at Serial Number 69 and the reassigned date of promotion is 18.01.2014, which the petitioner states is incorrect. The petitioner states that the 3^rd respondent has no authority to draw and publish a second provisional seniority list, without cancelling the earlier one.

4. The 3^rd respondent, as per Ext.P3 proceedings dated 30.07.2020, finalized Ext.P2 draft seniority list. Challenging Ext.P3, the petitioner preferred Ext.P4 appeal before the Managing Director, the 2^nd respondent. Since no action was taken on Ext.P4, WP (C) No.16182 of 2020 was filed by the petitioner seeking a direction to the 2^nd respondent to consider and pass orders thereon.

5. In the meantime, WP (C) No.13933 of 2019 was filed by one Saju challenging his reversion from the post of U.D Clerk to L.D Clerk for not passing the departmental test within the prescribed three years of occurrence of vacancy, as required under Rule 13A(2) of the KS & SSR, 1958. This Court stayed the reversion. Despite the order of stay, Saju was promoted to the post of Head Clerk, and his promotion was challenged by one Saffeeq and others in WP (C) No.1778 of 2020.

6. All the three writ petitions were heard and disposed of vide Ext.P5 common judgment dated 09.11.2022, whereby, the 2^nd respondent was directed to consider and pass orders on Ext.P4 appeal submitted by the petitioner within a period of three months from the date of receipt of copy of the judgment, with specific reference to the date of occurrence of vacancy and the date of acquisition of qualification.

7. Upon non-compliance of Ext.P5 judgment by the 2^nd respondent when the petitioner preferred Con. Case (C) No.1708 of 2023, an application for extension of time to comply with the direction in the judgment was filed by the 2^nd respondent and finally Ext.P6 communication dated 16.01.2024 was issued by the 2^nd respondent, reiterating what has been stated in Ext.P3 seniority list. The petitioner contends that Ext.P6 is in the nature of a communication and cannot be treated as an order and is, per se wrong and arbitrary. The Contempt of Court Case was disposed of by Ext.P8 judgment dated 22.02.2024 which reads as follows:

“Heard the learned counsel appearing for the petitioner. Since it is submitted that an order has been passed which is only a reproduction of the earlier order, it is contended that directions have not been complied with. However, in view of the fact that an order has been passed and issues with regard to inter se seniority in the water authority, I am of the opinion that a proper resolution of the issue can be had only with the affected parties on the party array.

In the above view of the matter, this Contempt of Court Case is, closed, without prejudice to the contentions of the parties and the right of the petitioner to challenge the order in appropriate proceedings.”

8. The petitioner states that as evident from Ext. P1, the date of promotion reassigned to her is 18.08.2011 and that she had passed the departmental test way back on 30.04.2011 and therefore entitled to be promoted to the post of U.D. Clerk with effect from 18.08.2011. However