CENTRAL ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL PRINCIPAL BENCH, NEW DELHI OA No.1813/2024 MA No.5169/2025 Reserved on: 28.01.2026 Pronounced on: 02.02.2026 Hon’ble Ms. Harvinder Kaur Oberoi, Member (J)

Hon’ble Dr. Sumeet Jerath, Member (A)

Anjani Lata, D/o Jai Singh Rathee, R/o H.No.1104, Gandhi Nagar, Ganaur, Distt. Sonepat, PIN-131101, Haryana Presently posted as Assistant Administrative Officer, O/o CAG HQRS, New Delhi - Applicant (By Advocate: Mr. Ayushman Aeron)

Versus

1. The Comptroller and Auditor General of India, Through the Comptroller and Auditor General of India, 9, Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Marg, New Delhi-110124 2. The Director General (Headquarters), O/o CAG, 9, Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Marg, New Delhi-110124

3. Union Public Service Commission, Through its Secretary, Dholpur House, Shahjahan Road, New Delhi-110001

4. The Department of Personnel & Training, Through its Secretary, North Block, Central Secretariat, New Delhi-110001 - Respondents (By Advocates: Mr. R.V. Sinha with Mr. A.S. Singh for R-3, Mr.

Rahul Burman, Mr. Bhuvnesh Shukla for Mr. Rajeev Kumar ORDER Hon’ble Ms. Harvinder Kaur Oberoi, Member (J):

The Applicant is aggrieved by the continued inaction on the part of the Respondents in not initiating the process for convening the Departmental Promotion Committee for consideration of her promotion to the post of Senior Audit/Administrative Officer, a Group ‘A’ post, despite repeated representations and despite clear instructions issued by the Department of Personnel and Training from time to time. The Applicant joined the office of Respondent No. 1 as a Junior Hindi Translator on 05.07.2012 pursuant to selection through an examination conducted by the Staff Selection Commission. She passed the Subordinate Audit Services Examination (Civil Audit) in May 2016 and was promoted to the post of Assistant Administrative Officer on 15.07.2016. The post of Assistant Administrative Officer is equivalent to the post of Assistant Audit/Accounts Officer, the difference being only in nomenclature as followed in the office of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India. Likewise, the post of Senior Administrative Officer is equivalent to Senior Audit/Accounts Officer. As per the Indian Audit and Accounts Department, Senior Accounts Officer and Senior Audit Officer Group ‘A’ Posts Recruitment Rules, 2019, the post of Senior Audit/Administrative Officer is a Group ‘A’ post and is to be filled by promotion from amongst Assistant Audit/Accounts Officers in Level- 8 of the Pay Matrix with seven years of regular service, including service rendered in the non-functional grade of Level-9. The Applicant completed seven years of regular service as Assistant Administrative Officer on 15.07.2023 and has also successfully completed the mandatory training prescribed for promotion to the post of Senior Audit Officer, as evidenced by the office order dated

13.10.2022.

2. Counsel for the applicant has submitted that there are a substantial number of vacancies in the cadre of Senior Administrative Officer. The sanctioned strength of the post is 215, and approximately 50–55 vacancies are presently available under the administrative control of Respondent No. 1. Even within the office of the CAG, out of 22 posts of Senior Administrative Officer, only six are occupied, leaving sixteen vacancies as on 01.11.2023. Respondent No. 1 is the Cadre Controlling Authority for the Applicant, and the Applicant is the only eligible officer available for consideration for promotion to the said post.

3. Counsel for the applicant has argued that despite clear and consistent directions issued by the DoPT through various Office Memorandums dated 08.09.1998, 16.06.2000, 28.01.2015, 08.05.2017 and 27.08.2021 mandating timely convening of DPCs in accordance with the model calendar, no steps were taken to convene the DPC in the Applicant’s case. Vide Circular dated 24.02.2023, Respondent No. 1 had itself called upon all Cadre Controlling Authorities to forward DPC proposals for promotions up