Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Mar 5: Division Bench of State High Court comprising Chief Justice Badar Durrez Ahmed and Justice Sanjeev Kumar has dismissed the LPA against the judgment of Writ Court whereby reframing of seniority of Patwaris was ordered strictly in terms of Rule 24 of the Jammu and Kashmir Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, 1956 .
In the LPA, it was submitted that pursuant to selection conducted by J&K Service Selection Board, a select list for the posts of Patwaris District Cadre Kathua was prepared in which name of the writ petitioners figured above the name of some of the private respondents in the writ petition. However, the orders of appointment in the case of some of the candidates were issued on 18.02.1999 whereas orders of appointment in case of others could be issued only on 25.02.1999, due to late receipt of character verification reports from Criminal Investigation Department.
The Revenue Department prepared a tentative seniority list wherein the name of writ petitioners figured below the private respondents in the writ petition. The aggrieved candidates objected to the tentative seniority list but their objection was rejected on the ground that the benefit of seniority could not be given to the writ petitioners for the reason that they had been appointed later in point of time than the private respondents in the writ petition.
The Single Bench after considering the rival contentions held that the seniority of writ petitioners as well as the private respondents was governed by Rule 24 of the Jammu and Kashmir Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, 1956. Relying upon the proviso to Rule 24, the Single Bench concluded that the seniority of the writ petitioners as also the private respondents was to be determined on the basis of their ranking in the merit list.
Accordingly, the writ petition was allowed and the tentative seniority list impugned issued on 12.12.2009 was quashed. The Single Bench also directed the official respondents to reframe the seniority list by showing the writ petitioners at their appropriate place, based upon their merit in the select list prepared by the Service Selection Board in terms of Class 24 of the Jammu and Kashmir Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, 1956 by treating the writ petitioners also to have been appointed on motion basis with effect from the date the private respondents in the writ petition had been appointed.
After hearing both the sides, the DB observed, “in terms of Jammu and Kashmir Revenue (Subordinate Service) Recruitment Rules, 2009, seniority of members of the service which includes Patwaris as well is required to be maintained as per Jammu and Kashmir Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, 1956. In terms of Proviso to Rule 24, the inter se seniority of two or more persons appointed to the same service, class, category or grade simultaneously shall be determined in the case of direct recruits according to the positions attained and assigned to them in the order of merit at the time of competitive examination, notwithstanding the fact that they may assume the duties of their appointments at different dates”.
“In view of statutory prescription, the stipulation made in the order of appointment–condition No.5 on the face of it is ultra vires. The official respondents by laying down a condition in the appointment order cannot change the statutory rules which provide for fixation of seniority of the members of Revenue Subordinate Service including Patwaris”, the DB said while dismissing the LPA.
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