The promotion of employees must align with updated recruitment rules following cadre restructuring, protecting their interests in a fair promotion process.

ORDER

Per Ms. Urmita Dutta (Sen), Judicial Member:

The instant Original Application has been filed by the applicants under Section 19 of the Administrative Tribunals Act , 1985 praying for the following reliefs:-

“a. An order granting leave to the applicants under Rule 4(5)(a) of the Central Administrative Tribunals (Procedure) Rules, 1987 to move this application jointly.

b. An order quashing and/or setting aside the impugned communication dated 2.1.2015.

c. An order directing the respondents particularly the Respondent No.2 to consider the case of the applicants and issue necessary directions/instructions for redressing the grievance of the applicants.

d. An order directing the respondents to treat the applicants and all STA/DOS as Executive Assistants in terms of Circular dated 18.12.2013 and to grant them promotion to the grade of Inspector (Examiner) by holding Review DPC in place and instead of the promotion granted to the applicants as DOS.

e. An order directing the respondents to produce/cause production of all relevant records.

f. Any other order or further order/orders as to this Hon'ble Tribunal may seem fit and proper.”

2. The applicants joined the Customs Department as Lower Division Clerk on 18.09.1995, 23.02.1994, 14.06.1991 and 26.07.1995 respectively. Subsequently, they got promoted as Upper Division Clerk on 16.01.2002, 19.03.2001, 24.07.2001 and 31.12.2002 respectively and further as Tax Assistant on 05.05.2003, 05.05.2003, 05.05.2003 and 13.06.2003 respectively and Senior Tax Assistant on 01.04.2010, 01.04.2009, 01.04.2009 and 01.01.2011 respectively. After their promotion as Senior Tax Assistant, a letter/Circular dated 18.12.2013 was issued by the Central Board of Excise & Customs addressed to the Director General, Directorate General of Human Resource Development, Customs & Central Excise, New Delhi regarding Restructuring & Reorganization of Field Formations under Central Board of Excise & Customs and in terms of the said letter the post of Deputy Office Superintendents and Senior Tax Assistants were merged and redesignated as Executive Assistant in the Grade Pay of Rs. 4200/- in PB-2 and their next promotional posts being either Administrative Officer or Inspector Cadre which includes Preventive Officer & Examiner.

The applicants state that prior to restructuring the of cadre the promotional channel from Senior Tax Assistant was either Deputy Office Superintendent or Inspector Cadre but due to the restructuring /organization there was no scope for promotion of Senior Tax Assistants to the post of Deputy Office Superintendent but without following the said instructions and without following the Para 6 of the aforesaid CBEC letter/circular dated 18.12.2013, the applicants were granted promotion as Deputy Office Superintendent on 02.05.2014, 09.05.2014, 09.05.2014 and 09.05.2014 respectively and such promotions were granted following the old Recruitment Rules, which were prevalent long prior to restructuring /reorganization of cadre and as a result of which the applicants were promoted as Deputy Office Superintendent in the same Grade Pay in PB-2 only with an incremental benefit of 3% whereas their juniors in the post of Senior Tax Assistants have been promoted as Inspector (Examiner) in PB-2 with Grade Pay of Rs. 4600/- due to availability of additional vacancies out of the aforesaid restructuring/reorganization of cadre in the post of Inspector (Examiner), although the fact remains that in view of cadre restructuring/reorganization