Prior service must be counted for promotion eligibility, even after a voluntary transfer, distinguishing eligibility from seniority.

By Kumar Rajesh Chandra, AM.

This Original Application has been filed by the applicant seeking direction to the respondents to promote him as Senior Tax Assistant from the date he completed 3 years service as Tax Assistant in the light of the judgments relied upon by him in the Original Application.

2. Briefly, the facts of the case of the applicant are that he participated in the selection conducted by the Staff Selection Commission. After selection, the SCC sent name of the applicant for the post of Tax Assistant in the Income Tax Department. The service of the applicant is governed by the Income Tax Department (Group C) Recruitment Rules, 2003 (hereinafter referred to as 'Recruitment Rules). After qualifying the examination and having completed three years of service as Tax Assistant, the applicant was promoted as Sr. Tax Assistant in his respective region. Due to some personal reasons, the applicant submitted an application for own request transfer. The own request transfer of the applicant was considered by the competent authority subject to acceptance of lower post i.e. Tax Assistant on his transfer to the Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh Region. The applicant was reverted to the post of Tax Assistant and thereafter he was relieved from Khammam on 26.10.2012. After joining at transferred place, the applicant came to know about the decision of the Principal Bench of this Tribunal delivered in O.A. No.2406/2005 in the case of Pramod Kumar Vs. Union of India wherein the instructions dated 14.5.1990 has been set aside. Similar view has been taken by the Lucknow Bench of this Tribunal passed in O.A. No.315/2012 and by this Tribunal in O.A. No.465/2013 dated 24.7.2015. The applicant submitted an application whereby he requested to consider his case for promotion to the post of Senior Tax Assistant by counting their past services rendered in erstwhile region. In compliance to the order passed by the Lucknow Bench of this Hon'ble Tribunal, the respondents have promoted applicants therein as Sr. Tax Assistants. The applicant further submitted that total sanctioned strength of Senior Tax Assistant in M.P. and Chhattisgarh Regions is 331 and against the sanctioned strength of 331, only 174 Senior Tax Assistants were working at that relevant point of time. Therefore, it is clear that the posts of Senior Tax Assistant are lying vacant in M.P. and Chhattisgarh Region. Therefore, the applicant may be promoted on the post of Senior Tax Assistant without any hindrance following the orders passed by the various Benches of this Tribunal. Unnecessarily, the applicant is being compelled to work on a lower post of Tax Assistant. It is important to note here that in compliance to the order passed by the Lucknow Bench of this Tribunal, the respondents have promoted applicants therein as Sr. Tax Assistant by order dated 10.07.2013 Annexure A/5. However, the similar benefit is not being extended in favour of the applicant without any justification.

3. In their reply, the respondents have stated that the applicant joined the department on 28/01/2008 as Tax Assistant. His application for Inter charge transfer from Andhra Pradesh Charge to M.P. & C.G. Charge CCIT (CCA), Bhopal was duly forwarded by CCIT (CCA), Hyderabad vide letter 26/08/2011. CCIT (CCA), Bhopal vide letter dated 28/08/2012 granted a No Objection to the transfer of Shri Ajay Kumar Dewangan, T.A., the CCIT (CCA), Hyderabad vide letter dt.

07/09/2012 placed his services at the disposal of Pr. CCIT (CCA), Bhopal and forwarded the duly filled service particular and undertaking incorporating the pre-requisite conditions as per the Board's Circular dt. 14/05/1990. The Pr. CCIT (CCA) Bhopal issued an absorption order with the following conditions:

a) His Seniority in M.P. & C.G. Region will be reckoned from the date he joined in this Region and his name will be placed below all the Tax Assistant working in M.P. & C.G. region on the date of his joining. However, he will not rank senior to