BHARAT SANCHAR NIGAM LIMITED AND ANOTHER versus G. SARVOTHAMAN

Citation: [2013] 12 S.C.R. 563 · Decided: 04-10-2013 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: K.S. RADHAKRISHNAN · Disposal: Appeal(s) allowed

Cited by 1 judgment(s) · see the full citation network in Lexace

Judgment (excerpt)

[2013] 12 S.C.R. 563 
BHARAT SANCHAR NIGAM LIMITED AND ANOTHER 
A 
v. 
G SARVOTHAMAN 
(Civil Appeal No. 8947 of 2013) 
OCTOBER 04, 2013 
B 
[K.S. RADHAKRISHNAN AND A.K. SIKRI, JJ.] 
PERSONS 
WITH 
DISABILITIES 
(EQUAL 
OPPORTUNITIES, PROTECTION OF RIGHTS AND FULL C 
PARTICIPATION) ACT, 1995: 
s. 59 - Chief Commissioner - Functions of - Explained 
- Complaint by respondent-physically handicapped (PH) 
person for not providing him reservation in promotion - Chief 
Commissioner directing to include Telecom Operating D 
Assistants (TOA) cadre in the list of notified jobs and to 
prepare 100 point reservation register for PH persons and to 
consider claim of respondent - Held: Promotion in physically 
handicapped quota was limited to certain categories of posts 
as identified by High Powered Committee constituted for the E 
purpose -- TOA was not identified for the purpose of 
reservation for physically handicapped persons - Chief 
Commissioner has no power to direct inclusion of one more 
category among the identified categories and to grant the 
benefit - He exceeded the powers conferred on him uls 59 -
F 
Order of Chief Commissioner, as confirmed by High Court, 
is set aside - Service law - Reservation in promotion for 
physically handicapped persons. 
The respondent was appointed as a Lower Division 
Clerk on compassionate ground in the Post Master G 
General's Office in 1973. Later, on bifurcation of the PMT 
Department 
into 
Departments 
of 
Posts 
and 
Telecommunications, the respondent opted for 
563 
H 
A 
B 
c 
D 
E 
F 
564 
SUPREME COURT REPORTS 
[2013] 12 S.C.R. 
Telecommunications Department. The respondent on his 
normal turns was promoted to higher posts and was 
ultimately promoted as Telecom Operating Assistant TOA 
Grade-Ill (Senior Section Supervisor), w.e.f. 01.07.1999. He 
then applied for promotion under the physically 
handicapped person's quota on the basis of OM 
No.36035/8/89-Estt.(SCT) dated 20.11.1989. The claim was 
declined by the appellant-BSNL. On the complaint filed 
by the respondent, the Chief Commissioner directed to 
include the TOA cadre in the list of identified jobs issued 
by Department of Telecommunications published in the 
Gazette notification No.178 dated 30.06.2001, to prepare 
a 100 point reservation register for PH persons, and to 
consider the claim of the respondent-complainant for 
promotion under reserved vacancies for the grade(s) as 
a PH person against reserved vacancies. The writ petition 
filed by BSNL was dismissed by the High Court ordering 
that the benefit of LSG cadre be given to the respondent 
from 01.03.1992. 
In the instant appeal filed by BSNL, the question for 
consideration before the Court was: "whether the Chief 
Commissioner has got the powers to order regularization 
of promotion and identification of eligible posts in a 
cadre, in the Department of erstwhile Telecommuni-
cations, while exercising powers under Section 59 of the 
Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, 
Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995. 
Allowing the appeal, the Court 
G 
HELD: 1.1. The Department of Personnel and 
Training by OM dated 20.11.1989 introduced reservation 
in favour of physically handicapped persons in posts 
filled by promotion (i) within Group 'D', (ii) from Group 'D' 
to Group 'C', and (iii) within Group 'C'. The promotion in 
H 
the physically handicapped quota was limited to five 
BHARAT SANCHAR NIGAM LIMITED v. G. 
565 
SARVOTHAMAN 
categories of posts as identified by the High Powered 
A 
Committee, namely, JTO, JAO, Stenographers, JE (Civil) 
and JE (Electrical). TOA was not identified for the purpose 
of reservation for physically handicapped persons. The 
Chief Commissioner has no power to direct inclusion of 
one more category among the identified categories and 
B 
to grant the benefit. [Para 6, 9-10 and 12] [568-G-H;570-
D-E, F, H; 571-A; 572-8-C] 
1.2. An employee who chose to join the new cadre 
of TOA cannot revert back for claiming any financial or 
promotion benefit in both the cadres simultaneously. 
C 
TOA cadre was introduced in the circle office w.e.f. 
09.09.1992 and the respondent had opted for TOA pattern 
with effect from the said date. Consequently, the 
respondent was working as TOA at the relevant time and, 
therefore, his claim for promotion to Grade-IV could not D 
be allowed since the promotion to the Grade was based 
on seniority in the basic cadre and in fact there was no 
reservation even for SC/ST candida

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