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Synopsis

The Supreme Court has set aside a division bench judgment of Gauhati High Court, which committed the "blatant error" by directing the upgraded Sectional Officer, Grade-I, to be given seniority in the cadre of Junior Engineers from a date on which they were not even born in the cadre in Nagaland.

A bench of Justices J K Maheshwari and Rajesh Bindal, in its judgment on August 28, 2024, noted it was only after October 11, 2007 upgradation order that the Sectional Officers, Grade-I became Junior Engineers, which was much after the direct recruitment made on May 01, 2003.

The court here allowed appeals filed by Nagaland government and a group of directly recruited Junior Engineers and upheld the seniority list of Junior Engineers as circulated on March 26, 2018.

The issue in the appeals was regarding inter se seniority of the incumbents appointed to the post of Junior Engineer on direct recruitment basis and those whose posts of Sectional Officer, Grade-I, were upgraded to Junior Engineer.

The final seniority list of Junior Engineers was circulated on March 26, 2018 showing the seniority position of the incumbents manning the posts from two different source.

Aggrieved against the seniority list, Sectional Officers, Grade-I, who were redesignated or upgraded as Junior Engineers challenged it before the High Court's Single Judge which on February 07, 2020 dismissed both the writ petitions.

They then filed an intra court appeal before a division bench which set aside the seniority list and directed to refix it in terms of its judgment.

The directly recruited Junior Engineers contended they were selected as such after qualifying the exam conducted by the Nagaland Public Service Commission and appointed in the pay-scale of Rs 6000-9750 by a notification of May 01, 2003. 

Their selection and appointment were strictly in terms of the Nagaland Engineering Service Rules, 1997.

They said the private respondents were earlier working in the cadre of Sectional Officers, Grade-I in the pay-scale of Rs 4500-7000. Their posts were upgraded to that of Junior Engineers on October 11, 2007.

The state government also said the judgment of the division bench is based on certain wrong facts and premise. 

In their arguments, the respondents said they were deemed to be promoted from various dates as Sectional Officers, Grade-I, as their officiating promotion was regularised. Hence, they were rightly granted seniority from that date as it was that post which was subsequently upgraded to Junior Engineer. 

The court noted prior to 2003 selection by the Nagaland Public Service Commission no direct recruitment was made. "Any seniority list of Junior Engineer which may have been circulated earlier will not have any bearing in the case in hand," it said.

During the interregnum 47 posts of Sectional Officer, Grade-I, working in the Nagaland Public Works Department were upgraded to Junior Engineer (Class-II Gazetted) on October 11, 2007. 

After considering claims and objections of all the incumbents working in the cadre of Junior Engineers, the seniority list was finalized on March 26, 2018, the court said.

"A perusal of the impugned order of the division bench of the High Court shows that it had totally misdirected itself while examining the 1997 Rules; the date of appointment of the private contesting respondents as Sectional Officer, Grade-I and the date of their regularisation as such," the bench said.

Those facts were not of any relevance for the decision of the question of seniority amongst the members of the cadre of Junior Engineers. 

"All what was required to be considered was the date on which they became members of the cadre of Junior Engineers coming from two different sources. As to whether the upgradation of the post was right or wrong is not an issue canvassed before this court," the bench said.

The court pointed out the division bench of the High Court has further gone wrong in considering the upgradation of post of Sectional Officer and certain other posts to that Junior Engineers prior to May 01, 2003 when direct recruitment to the post of Junior Engineers was made for the first time.

"That historical background did not have any relevance for the reason that prior to 2003 never before in the cadre of Junior Engineers there was recruitment from two different sources. The dispute arose only thereafter," the bench said.

The court also noted the pay-scales of Sectional Officer, Grade-I, was Rs 4500-7000 and the Junior Engineer was having pay-scales of Rs 6000-9750. Meaning thereby that they were working on a lower non-gazetted post, it added.