REPORTABLE

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA

CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION

CIVIL APPEAL NO. 1694 OF 2006

The State of West Bengal

and others

…

Appellants

Versus

Kamal Sengupta and another

… Respondents

J U D G M E N T

G.S. Singhvi, J.

1.

Whether a Tribunal established under Section 4 of the Administrative

Tribunals Act (for short ‘the Act’) can review its decision on the basis of

subsequent order/decision/judgment rendered by a coordinate or larger

bench or any superior Court or on the basis of subsequent

event/development is the question which arises for determination of this

appeal filed by the State of West Bengal and others against the judgment of

the High Court of Calcutta, whereby the said High Court declined to

interfere with order dated 25.9.2001 passed by the West Bengal

Administrative Tribunal (for short ‘the Tribunal’) in R.A. No.26 of 1998.

2.

The facts necessary for deciding the aforementioned question are as

under:-

(i)

Respondents Kamal Sengupta and Narayan Chandra Ghosh appeared

in the competitive examination conducted by the West Bengal Public

Service Commission in 1973 for recruitment to West Bengal Civil

Services (Executive) and other Allied Services. They were declared

successful and were allotted to West Bengal Food and Supplies

Service (hereinafter described as ‘the service’). Initially, they were

posted as Sub-Divisional Controller of Food and Supplies. In due

course, they were promoted as Assistant Director, Deputy Director

and finally as Director and their pay was fixed in the scales prescribed

for those posts. They were also given the benefit of revised scales

under the West Bengal (Revision of Pay and Allowance) Rules, 1981

(hereinafter referred to as ‘ROPA 1981’) and the West Bengal

(Revision of Pay and Allowance) Rules, 1990 (hereinafter referred to

as ‘ROPA 1990’).

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(ii)

After 20 years of joining the service, the respondents filed Writ

Petition No.1547 of 1995 for quashing letter dated 6.1.1995 vide

which the Finance Department of the State Government rejected their

claim for grant of Pay Scale Nos.19 and 21 in terms of the Career

Advancement Scheme (for short ‘the Scheme’) framed by the

Government of West Bengal, which was circulated vide

Memorandum dated 21.6.1990 and for issue of a mandamus to the

State Government to take action in accordance with the

recommendations made by Secretary, Food and Supplies Department

vide his DO No.G-5250/FC dated 5.10.1992, G-5302/FC dated

16.10.1992 and Con-223/FS dated 27.4.1994. They further prayed

for issue of direction to the non-petitioners (the appellants herein) to

declare the posts in Scale Nos.19 and 21 under Rule 2(b) of ROPA

1990 to be in the ranks of Joint Secretary and Special Secretary

respectively and sanction those posts for members of the service in

the same ratio as was done in the case of West Bengal Civil Services

Officers.

(iii)

In the affidavit filed by him in support of the writ petition, Narayan

Chandra Ghosh (respondent no.2 herein) referred to the factum of

sanction of Pay Scale Nos.17, 18 and 19 to members of the service

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under ROPA 1981, recommendations made by the Third Pay

Commission, the Scheme and averred that they have been subjected

to hostile discrimination in the matter of grant of Scale Nos.19 and

21. For the sake of reference, paragraphs 5, 9, 13, 17 and 18 of the

affidavit of respondent no.2 are reproduced below :-

“5.

That the petitioners having entered in to W.B.F.& S.S.,

in the year of 1974/75 after successfully passing the West

Bengal Civil Service (Executive) and certain allied service

examination held in 1973 were first posted in the basic grade

posts of Sub-Divisional Controller of Food and Supplies and

thereafter in recognition to meritorious service since rendered

by them were posted in different senior posts and posts with

higher responsibilities like Assistant Director, Deputy Director

and