DEVENDRA NARAYAN SINGH AND ORS. versus STATE OF BIHAR AND ORS.

Citation: [1996] SUPP. 7 S.C.R. 732 · Decided: 24-10-1996 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: K. RAMASWAMY · Disposal: Appeal(s) allowed

Judgment (excerpt)

A 
DEVENDRA NARA YAN SINGH AND ORS. 
v. 
STATE OF BIHAR AND ORS. 
OCTOBER 24, 1996 
1/ 
B 
(K. RAMASWAMY AND G.B. PATTANAIK, JJ.] 
Service Law 
Indian Police Se1vice (Promotion by Recrnitment) Regulations, 
C 1985-Regulation-9(b ). 
Indian Police Service (Regulation of Sr.ni01ity) Rules, 1954-Rule 
3(iii)-Promotion-To Cadre of Indian Police Servic~ from state Police 
Service Year of Allotme111'c---Challenge of-As per direction of Supreme Court 
to prepare select list for the year 1983-The select list prepared inf act i~ 1985 
D and allotment year given accordingly must be deemed to be for the year 
1983--Direction to Union Govemment to re-detennine the year of allotment 
of the appellants 011 the premise that they were included in the select list of 
1983. 
A Select List of 18 Officers of Bihar State Police Service, was made 
E for promotion to the 7 vacancies in the Cadre of Indian Police Service. 
F 
Appellants challenged the said Select List, in writ petition before High 
Court, wherein the Court directed the state to prepare fresh Select List for 
the year 1983. The spec:ial leave petition against the High Court's order, 
filed by the state, was d.ismissed upholding the order of the High Court. 
Pursuant to the order of this Court, the Selection Committee 
prepared the select List in 1985 which was approved in 1986 and the 
appellants were appointed in 1987. Respondent Union Government passed 
the order assigning the appellants the year of allotment as 1981. 
G 
Appellants chalknged the order of the respondent Union Govern-
ment, claiming the year of allotment to be 1979, vide application before 
Central-Administrative Tribunal. The Tribunal rejected the claim of the 
appellants. 
In appeal to this Court, appellants contended, that though the Select 
H List was prepared in 1985, was in fact, Select List of 1983. Therefore, in 
732 
DEVENDRANARAYANSINGHv. STATE[PATIANAIK,J.] 
733 
the eye of law it must be deemed that the appellants were in Select List of A 
1983. The respondent Union Government contended that an officer gets 
included in Select List, only when the Select List prepared by appropriate 
·authority gets approval. of UPSC. The Select List having been approved 
only in· 1986, allotment year has been rightly determined. 
Allowing the appeal, this Court 
HELD : 1.1. Though the list in question was made in the year 1985 
pursuant to the direction of this Court, and was approved by the Union 
Public Service Commission in 1986, but in the eye of law it must be deemed 
B 
to be a list for the year 1983. The Tribunal committed error in ignoring C 
the earlier direction of this Court and the legal fiction by which it must be 
held that the appellants were included in the Select List of the year 1983. 
The Union Government committed serious error in determining the year 
of allotment of the appellants on the basic that they were in the Select List 
from the date of approval of the list by the Union Public Service Commis· 
sion i.e. 1986. [737-A-D] 
D 
1.2. The· Union Government is directed to redetermine the year of · 
allotment of the appellants on the premise that they were included in the . 
Select List of.1983. Further the appellants are entitled to consequential . 
benefits. [737-E] 
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION : Civil Appeal No. 13236 of 
1996. 
From the Judgment and Order dated' 5.9.95 of the Central Ad-
E 
ministrative Tribunal, Patna in 0.A. No. 12 of 1993. 
p 
P.P. Rao, Vijay Kumar, J.P. Parihar, Abhay Chandrakant Mahimka 
for the Appellants. 
B.B. Singh for the Respondents. 
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by 
PAITANAIK, J. Leave granted. 
G 
This appeal by special leave is directed against the order dated 5th 
September, 1995 of the Central Administrative Tribunal, Patna Bench, H 
734 
SUPREME COURT REPORTS [1996] SUPP. 7 S.C.R. 
A Patna in O.A. No. 12 of 1993. The appellants who had been recruited to 
the Bihar State Police Service in the year 1969 were promoted to the Indian 
Police Service in the year 1987 in accordance with the provisions of the 
Indian Police Service. (Promotion by Recruitment) Regulations, 1955 
(hereinafter ref erred to as the 'Promotion Regulations'). On beif.g ap-
B pointed to the cadre of IPS they were assigned the year of allotment as 
1981 by the Central Government. They challenged the said order and 
claimed that their year of allotment should be 1979 before the Tribunal. 
The Tribunal by the impugned judgment rejected their claim and having 
dismissed the O.A.

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