RAJASTHAN STATE ROAD TRANSPORT CORPORATION & OTHERS versus SADHU SINGH

Citation: [2022] 1 S.C.R. 1130 · Decided: 04-02-2022 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: D.Y. CHANDRACHUD, SURYA KANT · Disposal: Appeal(s) allowed

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Judgment (excerpt)

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SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[2022] 1 S.C.R.
[2022] 1 S.C.R. 1130
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RAJASTHAN STATE ROAD TRANSPORT CORPORATION &
OTHERS
v.
SADHU SINGH
(Civil Appeal No.1058 of 2022)
FERBRUARY 04, 2022
[DR. DHANANJAYA Y CHANDRACHUD AND
SURYA KANT, JJ.]
Service Law – Selection Grade – Grant of – Respondent-
conductor was compulsorily retired from service in 2003 – He
instituted suit in 2010 seeking benefit of first, second and third
Selection Grades on completion of 9, 18 & 27 years of service –
Trial court partially decreed the suit, directing that respondent shall
be entitled to the grant of Selection Grade from 25 January 1992
on the completion of 9 years of service & the second Selection
Grade pay scale from 7 January 2002 on the completion of 18
years of service –First Appellate Court as well as the High Court
upheld the judgment of trial court – Held: The respondent waited
for seven long years after his retirement to pursue a claim for grant
of Selection Grade – It was clearly beyond the residuary period of
limitation of three years provided in Art. 137 of the Schedule to the
Limitation Act – That apart, grant of selection grade was not a
matter of right and was subject to terms and conditions which were
stipulated – In terms of Clause 7 of the scheme of Selection Grade
only those employees whose service record was satisfactory were to
be granted Selection Grade – Respondent failed to fulfill the terms
and conditions as it did not fulfill the requirements of a clean record
of service – During his service tenure, respondent was subjected to
several disciplinary proceedings and as many as 19 charge-sheets
were issued against him which resulted in penalties of varying nature
– Thus, both on the question of limitation as well as on merits,
respondent was not entitled to relief – Limitation Act, 1963 – Article
137 of the Schedule .
State of Rajasthan and Others v Shankar Lal Parmar
(2011) 14 SCC 235: [2011] 11 SCR 762 – referred to.
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Case Law Reference
[2011] 11 SCR 762
referred to
Para 8
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION: Civil Appeal No.1058 of
2022.
From the Judgment and Order dated 07.08.2018 of the High Court
of Judicature for Rajasthan Bench at Jaipur in S.B. Civil Second Appeal
No.282 of 2017.
Ms. Charu Mathur, Adv. for the Appellants.
Ms. Nidhi, Sarthak Arora, Advs. for the Respondent.
The following Order of the Court was passed:
ORDER
1. Leave granted.
2. This appeal arises from a judgment of a Single Judge of the
Rajasthan High Court at the Jaipur Bench in SB Civil Second Appeal
No 282 of 2017.
3. The respondent was appointed on the post of Conductor by the
Regional Manager of the appellant at Bikaner. On 25 January 1992, the
Finance Department of the Government of Rajasthan issued an Office
Order in regard to the grant of the benefit of the first, second and third
Selection Grades to employees on completing 9, 18 and 27 years of
service respectively. The Office Order of 25 January 1992 was made
applicable to the appellant. On 4 January 2003, the respondent was
compulsorily retired from service. During the tenure of his service, the
respondent was served with as many as 19 charge-sheets in pursuance
of which he was subject to departmental penalties.
4. The respondent instituted a suit in 2010, nearly seven years
after his compulsory retirement seeking the benefit of Selection Grade
on the completion of 9, 18 and 27 years of service. The Additional Civil
Judge (Junior Division) decreed the suit partially on 26 March 2012 by
directing that the respondent shall be entitled to the grant of Selection
Grade from 25 January 1992 on the completion of 9 years of service and
the second Selection Grade pay scale from 7 January 2002 on the
completion of 18 years of service. The appeal against the judgment of
RAJASTHAN STATE ROAD TRANSPORT CORPORATION &
OTHERS v. SADHU SINGH
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the trial Judge was dismissed by the First Appellate Court on 21 January
2017, and eventually, the High Court by its judgment dated 7 August
2018 dismissed the Second Appeal.
5. During the course of the hearing, two submissions have been
urged by Dr Charu Mathur, learned counsel who appears on behalf of
the appellant. Firstly, it has been submitted that the suit which was
instituted in 2010, nearly 7 years after the respondent had retired was
barred by limitation. Secondly, it has been submitted that in order to avail
of the benefit of the Selection Grade, the employee was req

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