LexPANCHRAJ TIWARI versus M.P. STATE ELECTRICITY BOARD AND OTHERS
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[2014] 3 S.C.R. 577 PANCHRAJ TIWARI v. M.P. STATE ELECTRICITY BOARD AND OTHERS (Civil Appeal No. 4371 of 2008) MARCH 4, 2014 [H.L. GOKHALE AND KURIAN JOSEPH, JJ.] SERVICE LAW: A B Merger of services - Consequences of- Services of c employees under erstwhile Rural Electricity Co-operative Society merged with Madhya Pradesh State Electricity Board - Graduate Junior Engineer of Erstwhile Society claiming promotion as Assistant Engineer as per MPSEB Circular dated 15. 11. 1990 - Held: Absorbed employees of Rural D Electricity Cooperative Societies, having due regard to their date of appointment! promotion in each category in the respective societies, shall be placed with effect from the date of absorption, viz., 15.03.2002 as juniors to the junior-most employee of the Electricity Board in the respective category E - Thereafter, they shall be considered for further promotions as per the rules/regulations of MPSEB - Appellant accordingly shall be entitled to retrospective promotions at par with and with effect from the dates on which the junior-most graduate engineer in the parent service on the date of absorption obtained such promotions - However, it is made F clear that benefits till date need to be worked out only notionally - Constitution of India, 1950 - Arts. 14 and 16. The appellant was appointed as Junior Engineer in the Rural Electricity Co-operative Society, Rewa in 1986. G The Board of Directors of the society passed a resolution on 27-12-1994 for his promotion as Assistant Engineer. Meanwhile, a policy decision was taken by the State Government to dissolve all such societies and merge the 577 H 578 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2014) 3 S.C.R. A same with Madhya Pradesh State Electricity Board and, ultimately, the Rural Electricity Co-operative Society, Rewa was completely merged with the MPSEB w.e.f. 15- 03-2002. Consequently, the employees of the society were taken over and absorbed in the MPSEB. Since the B appellant was not promoted as an Assistant Engineer, he filed a writ petition before the High Court. The single Judge dismissed the writ petition and the Division Bench of the High Court dismissed his appeal. c Allowing the appeal, the court HELD: 1.1 Chances of promotion are not conditions of service, but negation of even the chance of promotion certainly amounts to variation in the conditions of service attracting infraction of Arts. 14 and 16 of the Constitution. D No employee has a right to particular position in the seniority list but all employees have a right to seniority since the same forms the basis of promotion. If after integration, only the chances of promotion are affected, it is only to be ignored. In the instant case, there is complete denial of E promotion forever, which cannot be comprehended under the constitutional scheme of Arts 14 and 16 of the Constitution. [para 16-18] [585-E-G; 586-A] Tamil Nadu Education Department Ministerial and General Subordinate Services Association and others v. State F of Tamil Nadu and others (1980) 3 sec 97 - referred to. 1.2 Integration/merger of services means creation of a homogenous service by the merger of service personnel belonging to different services. Since it is not G specifically provided as to the position of absorbed employees of the Rural Electricity Cooperative Society, Rewa in the integrated service, such employees are placed as junior to the junior-most officer of the category concerned in the MPSEB on the date of absorption, viz., H 15.03.2002. [para 6 and 9] [582-C; 583-A-BJ PANCHRAJ TIWARI v. M.P. STATE ELECTRICITY 579 BOARD AND OTHERS R. S. Makashi and others v. I. M. Menon and others 1982 A (2) SCR 69 = (1982) 1 SCC 379; S. S. Bola and others v. B.D. Sardana and others 1997 (2) Suppl. SCR 507 = (1997) 8 SCC 522; and Praful/a Kumar Das and others v. State of Orissa and others 2003 (4) Suppl. SCR 301 = (2003) 11 SCC 614 - referred to. B 1.3 Having due regard to their date of appointment/ promotion in each category in the respective societies, they shall be placed with effect from the date of absorption, viz., 15.03.2002 as juniors to the junior-most employee of the Electricity Board in the respective C category. Thereafter, they shall be considered for further promotions as per the rules/regulations of the MPSEB. All other principles/conditions of absorption shall remain as such. However, it is made clear that on such promotions, in the exigencie
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