LexNATIONAL HIGHWAY AUTHORITY OF INDIA versus G ATHIPATHI AND OTHERS
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[2024] 12 S.C.R. 520 : 2024 INSC 943 National Highway Authority of India1 v. G Athipathi and Others (Civil Appeal No. 14100 of 2024) 09 December 2024 [Sudhanshu Dhulia and Ahsanuddin Amanullah,* JJ.] Issue for Consideration Issue arose as regards the criteria for promotion to the post of Deputy General Manager in the appellant-authority; and whether the respondent has to be treated as a fresh entrant with the benefit of his past service on deputation or he has to be treated as a fresh appointee, from the date he was selected. Headnotes† Service law – Promotion – Counting of deputation service period for promotion – Respondent repatriated to parent department after his deputation in appellant-authority for 6 years – Respondent re-joined the appellant on direct recruitment basis to the post of Manager (Technical) after a gap of 1 year – Thereafter, the appellant-Authority invited applications from the Managers for promotion to the post of Deputy General Manager – Application of the respondent rejected due to minimum experience criteria of 4 years not being met – Challenge to – Tribunal directed the Authority to count the deputation service period for promotion and pursuant thereto, the respondent was appointed – High Court upheld the said order of tribunal – Correctness: Held: Past services can be taken into consideration only when the Rules permit the same or where a special situation exists, which would entitle the employee to obtain such benefit of past service – Circular would not confer any legal right on the respondent for consideration for promotion to the post of Deputy General Manager (Technical) with effect from the date from which the tribunal directed the appellant-authority to promote 1 To be read as ‘National Highways Authority of India’. * Author [2024] 12 S.C.R. 521 National Highway Authority of India v. G Athipathi and Others the respondent to the said post – Repatriation of the respondent back to his parent Department was on full time basis and unconnected with the appellant-authority – Respondent was a fresh and new recruit into the service of the appellant-authority directly to the post of the Manager (Technical), totally unrelated/ unconnected to his previous service with the appellant-authority, which transaction was complete and reached finality when the respondent was repatriated to his parent department – As he had been repatriated to his parent department more than a year prior to such permanent appointment, it cannot be termed ‘absorption’ which finds mention in the Clause 6 of the Circular – Respondent does not stand in the same queue in which other persons were, as they were working with the appellant-authority at the relevant time – Object of Clause 6 was to obliterate the difference between a person working on deputation and a person regularly working – Respondent was absent from the service of the appellant-authority not for any of the specific purposes, but on a permanent basis-being sent back to his parent department – In ‘fulfilling administrative formalities-submission/ acceptance of technical resignation/ retirement etc’ would not cover situation of respondent – Decision taken by the appellant-authority not to grant promotion to the respondent to be upheld – Respondent could not have been considered for promotion from the date of issuance of circular inviting applications to the posts of Deputy General Manager as per the direction of the tribunal since he had not completed four years on the post of the Manager (Technical) after having joined pursuant to direct recruitment on such post, on which service could only be reckoned from date of his appointment to the post – Impugned Order as also tribunal’s order cannot be sustained and set aside – Respondent to be considered for promotion in terms of the Recruitment Regulations and the Circular. [Paras 23-29] Case Law Cited National Highways Authority of India v. Sanjeev Kumar Sharma, 2016 SCC OnLine Del 2698; Indu Shekhar Singh v. State of Uttar Pradesh [2006] Supp. 1 SCR 497 : (2006) 8 SCC 129 – referred to. List of Acts National Highways Authority of India (Recruitment, Seniority and Promotion) Regulations, 1996. 522 [2024] 12 S.C.R. Digital Supreme Court Reports List of Keywords Criteria for promotion; Post of Deputy General Manager; Benefit of past service on deputation; Fresh appointee; Promotion; Counting of deputation service period for promotion; Repatriation; Deput
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