Reserved on 21.01.2025.

CENTRAL ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL, ALLAHABAD BENCH, ALLAHABAD ALLAHABAD this the 23 rd day of January 2025.

Present:

HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE OM PRAKASAH -VII, MEMBER (J)

HON’BLE MR. MOHAN PYARE, MEMBER (A) ORIGINAL APPLICATION NO. 330/00648/2020 Anil Dwivedi age about 43 years, son of Shri Jagdamba Prasad Dwivedi, Residents of 966-D, Janmashtami Railway Colony, Kanpur 208004.

……….Applicant Versus

1. Union of India through General Manager, North Central Railway, Headquarters office, N.C. Railway, Prayagraj.

2. Divisional Railway Manager, North Central Railway, D.R.M.’s Office, Nawab Yusuf Road, Prayagraj.

3. Senior Divisional Engineer (Coordination), North Central Railway, DRM’s office, Nawab Yusuf Road, Prayagraj.

4. Senior Divisional Personnel Officer, North Central Railway, DRM’s Office, Nawab Yusuf Road, Prayagraj.

….Respondents Present for the Applicant: Shri P.K Mishra/Shri Rajesh Kumar Present for the Respondents: Shri Ajay Kumar Rai

O R D E R

BY HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE OM PRAKASAH -VII, MEMBER (J)

Through this Original Application, the applicant has challenged the impugned order dated 07.07.2020. Applicant has also prayed to direct the respondents to step up the pay of the applicant at par with his junior person named Shri Dhiraj Prasad who is of the same seniority unit and fix up pay of the applicant at par with Shri Dhiraj Prasad by stepping up of pay at par with him from the date Shri Dhiraj Prasad was drawing more pay than the applicant.

2. Brief facts of the case are that in pursuance of notification issued by the Railway Recruitment Board for the post of Junior Engineer (Horticulture) in grade of Rs. 5000-8000/-, Allahabad, applicant applied and appeared in the written examination, which was held on 28.05.2006. Applicant was successful in the written examination and was called for document verification, which was scheduled on 24.08.2006. Final panel was prepared in which name of applicant figured at Serial No. 4. After completion of all the formalities, respondents issued the offer of appointment dated 07.09.2010 to the applicant. Applicant was sent for training and after completion of training, he was posted as Junior Engineer (Horticulture) under IOW/Horti/NCR/Allahabad vide letter dated 20.09.2010. It is important to mention here that other candidates who are junior to the applicant as per merit position have been joined earlier to the applicant. Delay in joining of the applicant is attributed on part of the administration not on part of applicant. He approached to the respondents to assign the seniority of applicant vide representation dated 05.01.2018. Respondents vide letter dated 26.12.2018 replied that his name has been corrected in the seniority list and shown as below the name of Shri Vinay Kumar Mishra and above the name of Shri Dhiraj Prasad. It is also important to mention here that the basic pay of the applicant is Rs. 47,600/- whereas the basic pay of Shri Dhiraj Prasad junior to the applicant is Rs. 53,600/-. Shri Dhiraj Prasad was granted 1^st financial upgradation under MACP scheme w.e.f. 09.04.2018 in the Grade Pay of Rs. 4600/- but the applicant has deprived of the aforesaid benefits. Aggrieved with this discrimination, applicant preferred a representation dated 11.04.2019 followed by reminder dated 07.01.2020 for request to stepped up the pay of the applicant at par with his junior Shri Dhiraj Prasad. Respondents has decided the representation of the applicant in a most casual and perfunctory manner vide impugned order dated 07.07.2020. Being aggrieved, the applicant has filed this original application assailing aforesaid order.

3. We have heard Shri P.K Mishra, learned counsel for the applicant and Shri Ajay Kumar Rai, learned counsel for the respondents and perused the records.

4. Learned counsel for the applicant argued that Applicant challenges the impugned order on the ground that the reasons given for rejecting his application are neither valid nor legal but that the application has been