ORDER :

Petitioner is serving as Deputy Ranger in the Himachal Pradesh Forest Department. In response to the process initiated for promotion to the post of Forest Range Officer, on 1.2.2020, petitioner made a request for considering his name for such promotion, but he was not promoted, despite making further request on 9.10.2020, due to pendency of criminal case against him, in pursuant to FIR No.11 of 2018, dated 11.2.2018, in Police Station Kasauli, District Solan, wherein he was arrested and remained in police custody with effect from 12.2.2018 to 15.2.2018 and thereafter he was detained in judicial custody till 3.3.2018. After his release, he joined the duty on 5.3.2018, and he was actually reinstated by the competent authority vide order dated 29.3.2018. Charge-sheet against the petitioner has been filed in the Court of Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Kasauli on 28.6.2018 and supplementary charge-sheet was filed on 24.9.2018, which is pending adjudication and charges have not been framed against the petitioner till date.

2. Meeting of Departmental Promotion Committee (DPC) was held on 14.12.2020 and for pendency of the criminal proceedings, the DPC has adopted Sealed Cover Procedure with respect to the petitioner.

3. Present petition has been filed, seeking direction to the respondents-State to promote the petitioner with effect from 24.12.2020, the date on which respondents No.3 to 22, who are his juniors, have been promoted.

4. Learned counsel for the petitioner has submitted that in present case only charge-sheet has been presented in Court and charges have not been framed and in view of this status of criminal case, there was no occasion for the DPC to adopt Sealed Cover Procedure, with respect to petitioner. He has placed reliance on pronouncement of Supreme Court of India in Union of India & others v. K.V. Jankiraman & others, (1991) 4 SCC 109 and pronouncements of this High Court in CWP(T) No.1850 of 2008, titled as Surinder Singh v. State of H.P. and another, decided on 4.5.2010; and CWP No.1529 of 2019, titled as Manoj Thakur v. State of Himachal Pradesh & others, decided on 26.12.2019. Whereas, adoption of Sealed Cover Procedure by the DPC for considering the candidature of the petitioner has been justified by learned Deputy Advocate General by putting reliance on pronouncements of Supreme Court of India in K.V. Jankiraman’s case; Delhi Development Authority, (1993) 3 SCC 196; and Harsh Kumar Sharma, IFS v. State of Punjab & another, (2017) 4 SCC 366; and that of Delhi High Court in Union of Inida v. V. Appalla Raju, 2017 SCC OnLine Del 6914 (WP (Civil) No.8758 of 2014, decided on 30.1.2017); and Sidharth Rath v. Central Warehousing Corporation, 2017 SCC OnLine Del 7829 (W.P.(C) No.3025/2017, decided on 10.4.2017), with contention that ratio of K.V. Jankiraman’s case stands clarified and explained in Harsh Kumar Sharma’s case.

5. Procedure for consideration of cases where disciplinary/Court proceedings, etc., are pending, has been detailed in Hand Book on Personnel Matters, Vol-I (Second Edition), in Chapter 16 at Para 16.32, wherein it is mentioned that in supersession of all earlier instructions, the Government of India has issued revised instructions in this behalf on 14.2.1992, which have been adopted on 3.12.1992 for application to employees/Officers of Himachal Pradesh. These instructions have been reproduced in the Hand Book on Personnel Matters. These instructions also provide procedure for six monthly review of sealed cover cases and procedure for adhoc promotion.

6. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that, in present case, Sealed Cover Procedure was adopted in the DPC on 14.12.2020 and six months have elapsed on 14.6.2020, but till date no six monthly review has been undertaken by the Department nor procedure for adhoc promotion has been undertaken, with respect to the petitioner, despite the fact that promotion of the petitioner would not be against public interest and the case registered agai