- (1.) Question involved in this case is whether seniority of the engineers designated as Assistant Engineers Grade- II (Graduate Junior Engineers) and Sectional Engineers (Diploma holders with requisite experience) belonging to one single cadre of Junior Engineers of the respondent no.1-Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC), is to be determined on the basis of date of joining service or the date of acquiring degree qualification.
(2.) The appellant was appointed junior engineer on 09.02.1984 (joined on 13.02.1984) with the respondent no.1-Nagpur Municipal Corporation. Thereafter, as per the aforesaid Circular dated 19.10.1984, he was designated as Sectional Engineer on completion of requisite years of experience i.e. 13.02.1989. Thereafter, on 05.04.1993, the appellant acquired degree qualification and therefore, he was designated as Assistant Engineer-II, in the same cadre of junior engineers. The appellant was not given an order but an entry was made in the service book - "Henceforth he will be designated as Assistant Engineer Grade-II".
(3.) In the light of the decision of this Court rendered in P. Sudhakar Rao & Ors. Vs. U. Govinda Rao & Ors., 2013 8 SCC 693, we find that no case for interference is made out. More so, in view of the judgment of this Court in K.K. Dixit & Ors. Vs. Rajasthan Housing Board & Anr., 2015 1 SCC 474, this Court has observed that service rendered prior to attaining the qualification, cannot be claimed for seniority when the requisite qualification was not possessed.;