The determination of seniority and promotions based on seniority rather than quota allocation.

JUDGMENT

S.K. Mishra, J. - Heard Mr. Shobhit Saharia, the learned counsel for the petitioners, and Mr. Pradeep Joshi, the learned Additional Chief Standing Counsel, for the State of Uttarakhand-respondents.

2. The private respondent nos. 2 to 12 did not appear in this case inspite of sufficient notice.

3. In this Writ Petition, the petitioners have prayed for quashing of the judgment and order dated 20.06.2018 passed by the Uttarakhand Public Services Tribunal, hereinafter, referred as the Tribunal, for brevity, in Claim Petition No. 05/NB/DB/2014 (Anirudh Singh Bhandari and others v. State of Uttarakhand and others), whereby the Claim Petition of the petitioners was rejected. The petitioners have further prayed to issue a writ in the nature of certiorari to quash the Seniority List dated 01.04.2011 of the Assistant Engineer (Civil), which was promulgated after due promotion of the petitioners in the cadre of Executive Engineer, and the petitioners were shown juniors to the private respondents in the cadre of the Assistant Engineer (Civil) in alleged disregard of Rule 8(3)2(i) of the Uttarakhand Government Servant Seniority Rules, 2002. The petitioners have further prayed to issue a writ in the nature of certiorari quashing the order dated 12.02.2013 and 13.02.2013 granting notional promotion in alleged violation of the Uttarakhand Government Servant Seniority Rules, 2002, as amended in 2009.

4. Originally, the petitioners filed a Claim Petition, being Claim Petition No. 05/NB/DB/2014, before the Uttarakhand Public Services Tribunal Bench at Nainital seeking the following reliefs :-

"a) To pass appropriate order and direction quashing the impugned orders dated 12.02.2013 and 13.02.2013, vide which absolutely illegally, improperly and irregularly State Government has granted notional promotion to the private respondents, belonging to S.T. category, to the post of the Executive Engineer w.e.f. 11.12.2009 & 13.08.2010 on the premise that juniors to them in the A.E. (Civil) P.W.D. have been promoted w.e.f. 11.12.2009.

b) To pass appropriate order and direction prohibiting the State Government from deeming and treating the petitioners as part of A.E. (Civil) PWD cadre after their substantive appointment and promotion to the post and cadre of Executive Engineer (Civil) PWD.

c) To pass appropriate orders and directions which the Hon'ble Tribunal may deem fit and proper in the facts and circumstances of the case.

d) To award cost of the claim petition to the petitioners.

e) To pass appropriate order and direction quashing the seniority list dated 01.04.2011, annexed as Annexure No. 4 to the claim petition."

5. The learned Tribunal took into consideration the facts of the case, and dismissed the Claim Petition.

6. The facts of the case, in brief, are narrated as follows :-

At the of creation of the State of Uttarakhand, the petitioners were working as Junior Engineers (Civil), while the private respondent nos. 2 to 12 were in the U.P. Cadre of the Assistant Engineers (Civil) through their direct selection by the Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission in the years 1997 and 1999. The private respondents, who belong to the Scheduled Tribe category, were not initially allocated to the cadre of Uttarakhand, while the petitioners were allocated in the cadre of Junior Engineers (Civil) in the State of Uttarakhand. The petitioners got their promotion to the post of Assistant Engineer (Civil) in the State of Uttarakhand on 02.11.2002. Thereafter, on completion of seven years of their service as Assistant Engineer, they were further promoted to the post of Executive Engineer on 13.08.2010, on the basis of the seniority list dated 12.10.2009.

After a long litigation before the Hon'ble High Court and the Hon'ble Apex Court, the private respondent nos. 2 to 12 were allocated the Uttarakhand cadre, vide allotment order dated 12.08.2010, passed by the Central Government. In compliance of that, the previous seniority list of Assistant Engineers, issued on 12.10.2