Sawant, J. - (1.) The petitioner-applicants are some of the Medical Officers who were recruited by the Railways on ad hoc basis as Assistant Divisional Medical Officers between 1968 and 1st October, 1984. They were appointed as such ad hoc employees by way of a stop-gap arrangement pending the regular recruitment to the said posts through the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC for short, according to the rules. It appears that although from time to time the UPSC recruited candidates on regular basis, there remained some vacancies unfilled, either because the doctors recruited were less in number than the number of vacancies since suitable candidates were not available or some of those who were selected did not join the service or between the date of advertisement by the UPSC and that of the empanelling, some more vacancies occurred. Whatever the reasons, the fact was that even after the UPSC undertook the exercise of recruiting the doctors from time to time, some vacancies always remained unfilled. The result was that every time the petitioner-applicants and others like them were continued on ad hoc basis as a stop-gap arrangement till the next recruitment by the UPSC. It may be mentioned in this connection that the ad hoc appointees were always at liberty to appear before the UPSC for their regular recruitment. Some of them in fact did so appear and were selected; others like the petitioner-applicants either failed to be selected or did not care to appear. The fact, however, remains that the petitioner-applicants and others like them continued to serv on ad hoc basis since 1968. Hence they filed writ petitions in this Court for their regularisation in service. By an order dated 24th September, 1987 passed in the case of Dr. A. K. Jain vs. Union of India, (1987) Suppl. SCC 497 at 500 this Court directed as follows :"(1) The services of all doctors appointed either as Assistant Medical Officers or as Assistant Divisional Medical Officers on ad hoc basis up to October 1, 1984 shall be regularised in consultation with the Union Public Service Commission on the evaluation of their work and conduct on the basis of their confidential reports in respect of a period subsequent to October 1, 1982. Such evaluation shall be done by the Union Public Service Commission. The doctors so regularised shall be appointed as Assistant Divisional Medical Officers with effect from the date from which they have been continuously working as Assistant Medical Officer/Assistant Divisional Medical Officer. The Railway shall be at liberty to terminate the services of those who are not so regularised. If the services of any of the petitioners appointed prior to October 1, 1984 have been terminated except on resignation or on disciplinary grounds, he shall be also considered for regularisation and if found fit his services shall be regularised as if there was no break in the continuity of service but without any back wages. (2) The petitions of the Assistant Medical Officers/Assistant Divisional Medical officers appointed subsequent to October 1, 1984 are dismissed. But we however direct that the Assistant Divisional Medical Officers who may have been now selected by the Union Public Service Commission shall first be posted to the vacant posts available wherever they may be. If all those selected by the UPSC cannot be accommodated against the available vacant posts they may be posted to the posts now held by the doctors appointed on ad hoc basis subsequent to October I, 1984 and on such posting the doctor holding the post on ad hoc basis shall vacate the same. While making such postings the principle of last come, first go shall be observed by the Railways on zonal basis. If any doctor who is displaced pursuant to the above direction is willing to serve in any other zone where there is a vacancy he may be accommodated on ad hoc basis in such vacancy. (3) All Assistant Medical Officers/Assistant Divisional Medical Officers working on ad hoc basis shall be paid the same salary and allowances as Assistant Divisional Medical Officers on the revised scale with effect from January 1, 1986. The arrears shall be paid within four months. (4) No ad hoc Assistant Medical Officer/Assistant Divisional Medical Officer who may be working in the Railways shall be replaced by any newly appointed AMO/ADMO on ad hoc basis. Whenever there is need for the appointment of any AMO/ADMOs on ad hoc basis in any zone the existing ad hoc AMO/ADMOs who are likely to be replaced by regularly appointed candidates shall be given preference. (5) If the ad hoc doctors appointed after October 1, 1984 apply for selection by the Union Public Service Commission the Union of India and the Railways Department shall grant relaxation in age, to the extent of the period of service rendered by them as ad hoc doctors in the Railways. All the Writ Petitions are disposed of in the above terms."
(2.) It appears that since they experienced difficulty in adjusting the seniority of the petitioner-applicants the Union of India moved an application before this Court and this Court on 1st November, 1988 made the following order in that application ; "We have heard learned counsel for the Union of India (the applicant in this Civil Miscellaneous Petition) and the learned counsel for the petitioners in the Writ Petition. In the circumstances of the case we feel that the Union Government should be directed to implement the order passed by us in the writ petition Nos. 822, 875, 180 and 200 of 1987 and connected cases on 24th September, 1987* in full except to the extent of fixing the inter se seniority between the petitioners in the Writ Petition and the direct recruits. We accordingly make an order in this case. The question of seniority, however, is left to be decided by the Government in the light of the decision to be rendered by this Court in the cases which are pending before the Constitution Bench involving similar questions. If any person aggrieved by the decision of the Government on the question of seniority he is at liberty to question it in an appropriate forum. The order passed by us in the Writ Petition subject to the above modification shall be complied with by the Union Government within two months without failure. * Reported in (1987) Suppl. SCC 497. The Civil Miscellaneous Petition is disposed of accordingly."
(3.) The present application has been moved in Writ Petition No. 1165 of 1986 which has been disposed of on 24th September, 1987* along with other writ petitions in which also the aforesaid order of 1st November, 1988 was made by this Court.;