IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA

CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION

CIVIL APPEAL NOS.6934-6946 OF 2005

Union of India

……..Appellant

Versus

Pushpa Rani & Others

……….Respondents

WITH

C.A. NO.6932 OF 2005

Union of India

……… Appellant

Versus

N.D. Kakkar & Others

.…….Respondents

WITH

C.A. NO.6919 OF 2005

All India SC/ST Railway Employees Assn.

……… Appellant

Versus

Union of India & Others

.…….Respondents

WITH

C.A. No.612 of 2006

Union of India

……… Appellant

Versus

Jarnail Singh & Others

.,…….Respondents

WITH

C.A. No._______of 2008

(Arising out of S.L.P. (C) No.5045 OF 2007)

Union of India & Others

………

Petitioners

Versus

Rubi Mazumdar

..…….Respondent

J U D G M E N T

G.S. Singhvi, J.

1.

Whether the policy of reservation of posts for Scheduled Castes/

Scheduled Tribes can be applied at the stage of giving effect to cadre

restructuring exercise undertaken pursuant to letter No.PC-III/2003/CRC/6

dated 9.10.2003 issued by the Railway Board is the question which arises

for determination in the above noted appeals filed against the orders of

Punjab & Haryana High Court which upheld the decision of Chandigarh

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Bench of the Central Administrative Tribunal (hereinafter referred to as ‘the

Tribunal’) to quash para 14 of the said letter and the direction given for

making appointments de hors the policy of reservation. The special leave

petition filed by the Union of India against the order of Allahabad High

Court is being disposed of along with appeals because the issue arising

therein is similar.

2.

For the sake of convenience, we have taken the facts from the record

of Civil Appeal Nos.6934-6946 of 2005. The same are:-

(i)

Respondents Pushpa Rani and six others joined service as Clerks in

Ambala and Ferozepur Divisions of the Northern Railway. They

were promoted as Senior Clerks and then as Head Clerks. They filed

applications under Section 19 of the Administrative Tribunals Act,

1985 for quashing the instructions issued by the Railway Board vide

letter No.PC-III/2003/CRC/6 dated 9.10.2003 for giving effect to the

policy of reservation of posts for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled

Tribes at the stage of restructuring of Group C and D cadres. They

pleaded that the exercise of restructuring undertaken by the

government resulted in upgradation of the existing posts and in view

of the law laid down by the Supreme Court, the policy of reservation

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cannot be applied while making appointment against the upgraded

posts.

(ii)

In the counter filed on behalf of the administration, it was pleaded

that instructions issued by the Railway Board are in conformity with

the policy decision taken by the Government of India and the

applicants cannot object to the reservation of posts for Scheduled

Castes and Scheduled Tribes because restructuring of cadres resulted

in creation of additional posts which were required to be filled by

promotion.

(iii)

The Chandigarh Bench of the Tribunal allowed the application filed

by Pushpa Rani and others along with 12 similar applications filed by

other employees of Ambala and Ferozepur Divisions of Northern

Railway, Rail Coach Factory, Kapurthala and Diesel-Loco

Modernization Works, Patiala and quashed para 14 of letter dated

October 9, 2003. The Tribunal declared that the policy of reservation

of posts for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes is not applicable

to the restructuring scheme including exchange formula and directed

the petitioners herein to consider the cases of the applicants

(respondents herein) and other eligible persons for placing them in

4

appropriate pay scales under the restructuring scheme keeping in

view their eligibility and suitability and give them consequential

benefits.

(iv)

The Union of India through Divisional Personnel Officer, Northern

Railway, Ambala, challenged the order of the Tribunal in Civil Writ

Petition No.3182-CAT of 2003, which wa