GAHC010007102025

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THE GAUHATI HIGH COURT

(HIGH COURT OF ASSAM, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH)

Case No. : WP(C)/293/2025

SAJU KUMAR JADAV

S/O DULAL CHANDRA GHOSE, M.SC. DEPUTY DIRECTOR, IN THE OFFICE OF DIRECTOR OF SECONDARY EDUCATION, ASSAM, R/O HOUSE NO. 19,

SOUTH BYE LANE NO. 2, LACHITNAGAR, GUWAHATI, KAMRUP (M),

ASSAM, PIN-781007

VERSUS

THE STATE OF ASSAM

REPRESENTED BY THE SECRETARY TO THE GOVT. OF ASSAM,

DEPARTMENT OF SCHOOL EDUCATION (SECONDARY EDUCATION

DEPARTMENT), ASSAM (CIVIL) SECRETARIAT, BLOCK-C, DISPUR,

GUWAHATI, ASSAM, PIN-781006

Advocate for the Petitioner : MR. B PURKAYASTHA,

Advocate for the Respondent : SC, SEC. EDU.,

BEFORE

HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE ROBIN PHUKAN

ORDER

03.11.2025

Heard Mr. B. Purkayastha, learned counsel for the petitioner and Mr. U. Sarma, learned standing counsel for the Secondary Education Department.

2. In this petition, under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, the

petitioner, namely Sri Saju Kumar Jadav, has prayed :-

(i) For setting aside and quashing the remarks of degradation, awarded by the reviewing authority and accepting authority in his Annual Confidential Report (ACR hereinafter) for the year 2019 – 2020 (Annexure – 8A), 2020 – 2021 (Annexure – 8B), 2023 – 2024 (Annexure – 8C);

(ii) For directing the respondent authorities to redo the promotional exercise in respect of his promotion to the cadre of Joint Director as per the provisions of Assam Education Service Rules, 1982 (Rule

1982 hereinafter);

(iii) For directing the respondent authorities to grant retrospective consequential promotional benefits to him whatever granted to the incumbents junior to him; and (iv) For directing respondent authorities to consider his candidature for the post of Additional Director, in the event the junior incumbents serving/promoted in the cadre of Joint Director, vide Notification dated 15.02.2024 (Annexure – 2).

Background Facts:-

3. The backgrounds facts, leading to filing of the present petition, are adumbrated herein below:-

“The petitioner was appointed in the year 2013, in the cadre of Deputy Director/Inspector of Schools/District Elementary Education Officer (DEEO hereinafter), as per the provision of Rules 1982, on the basis of selection done by the APSC and since then, he has been serving in the same cadre in different capacities and presently he is posted as Deputy Director, in the office of the Director of Secondary Education, Assam, w.e.f. March, 2021.

On 26.07.2024, the respondent has convened a meeting of the DPC, for promotion to the cadre of Joint Director, under the provisions of the Rules 1982, from the feeder cadre of Deputy Director/Inspector of Schools/DEEO, in which the present petitioner is also serving as Deputy Director, in the office of the Director of Secondary Education, Assam and as per the notification dated 05.11.2019, issued by the Government, ACR for the period of past five years of service are taken into consideration and marks are awarded on the basis of the final acceptance remark of the ACR given by the Accepting Authority.

It is the contention of the petitioner is that as per the provision of the Assam Services (Confidential Rolls) Rules, 1990 (Rules 1990 hereinafter), in the event of Reviewing Authority and Accepting Authority differ from the assessment of the Reporting Authority and degrades the remark of the employee, the employee concerned has to be given the opportunity to submit his representation and the authority concerned has to give the reasons for such deferment of their opinion. Further, the authority has to remain in his office for a minimum period of ninety days for awarding the remarks for a particular period.

In the instant case, in total violation of the statutory provision of the Rules 1990, the authorities have degraded the remark and imposed the adverse remark in the ACR of the petitioner for the year 2019 – 2020, 2020 – 2021 and 2023 – 2024 and thereby, awarded him lesser mark in order to unlawfully place him below the junior incumbents to him i