Petitioner entitled to retrospective benefits from promotion date due to having performed duties in the post, despite retirement status; denial of benefits ruled arbitrary.

JUDGMENT :

Jiya Lal Bhardwaj, J.

The petitioner has filed the instant petition, praying therein for the following substantive reliefs:-

“(i) That the Respondent may kindly be directed to treat Petitioner to have been regularized /promoted to the post of Tehsildar (Class I Gazetted) on regular basis w.e.f. 08.01.2014 when he was promoted on ad hoc basis (Annexure P-2) against 2014 vacancies in pursuance of promotion order dated 21st June, 2019 (Annexure P-7) with all consequential benefits including retiral.

ii) That last para of impugned Notification dated 21st June, 2019 (Annexure P-7) may kindly be declared null and void and the same may kindly be quashed and set aside qua the Petitioner.”

2. Shorn of unnecessary details, the brief facts of the case are that the petitioner was appointed as Clerk with the respondents on 01.12.1980 and promoted as Naib Tehsildar w.e.f. 30th December, 2008. Thereafter, vide Notification dated 16.07.2013, the respondents were pleased to order the transfer/posting of few of the Naib Tehsildars, working in the Revenue Department, Himachal Pradesh, against the post of Tehsildars, to work in their existing scale and the petitioner who was working as Naib Tehsildar, Sub Tehsil, Sainj (Kullu), was posted as Tehsildar, Shahpur, District Kangra, H.P. Thereafter, vide Notification dated 08.01.2014, the petitioner was promoted as Tehsildar (Class-I Gazetted) in the pay-scale of Rs.10,300-34,800+Grade Pay of Rs.5,000/- purely on adhoc basis for a period of three months or till “A” & “B” Class Tehsildars become available for appointment as Tehsildars.

3. The petitioner has placed on record the minutes of the DPC convened on 30.04.2014, whereby the vacancies upto the year 2014 were considered for promotion to the posts of Tehsildar. However, the petitioner though eligible for promotion and in the zone of consideration, was not considered and only one Naib Tehsildar namely, Ms.Champa Bhardwaj, who was retiring on 30.06.2014, was considered and recommended for promotion to the post of Tehsildar. A perusal of the minutes of the meeting of DPC, clearly reveals that there were 16 vacancies with the respondents- Department for the year 2014, out of which, 14 were for the General category and one each for the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes categories, respectively. The petitioner has also placed on record the final seniority list of Naib Tehsildars working in Mandi Division as stood on 31.05.2012, in which, the name of petitioner figures at Serial No.12. When the candidature of the petitioner was not considered for promotion to the post of Tehsildar, he preferred the Original Application, bearing O.A.(M) No.148 of 2017 before the erstwhile Himachal Pradesh Administrative Tribunal and the learned Tribunal vide order dated 13.06.2017, had directed respondent No.1, to take a final decision on the representation of the petitioner. When no action was taken by the respondents, the petitioner filed a Contempt Petition, bearing Cont. Pet. (M) No.13 of 2018 in O.A.(M) No.148 of 2017, titled, Gulab Singh Thakur vs. Onkar Chand Sharma , which was disposed of by the learned Tribunal on 11.03.2019, with a direction to the respondents to ensure that the process be expedited and brought to the logical conclusion without any further delay, but latest by 31st August, 2019.

4. In sequel to the said directions, the respondents, had issued Notification dated 21.06.2019 (Annexure P-7), thereby promoting the petitioner to the post of Tehsildar along-wit