- (1.) Heard Mr. Shiv S.E. Chitamber, learned counsel for the petitioner, Mr. J. N. Mathur, learned Senior Advocate assisted by Mr. Amit Kumar Singh Bhadoriya, learned counsel for the respondent no.2 as well as Mr. Mansoor Ahmad, learned Chief Standing Counsel for the respondent no.1.
(2.) The petitioner has assailed the decision of the respondent no.1, whereby the third respondent's service has been extended for further one year and also has prayed for quashing of amendment, if any, has been done in the Article 32(i) (b) of the Article of Association of the Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited. Article 32(i)(b) reads as under: "The Chairman, Managing Director and whole time Directors shall be appointed for a initial tenure of three years which may be extended from time to time with the approval of administrative department of the State Government subject to the age of incumbent not being more than 62 years. Such Director(s) and shall be subject to removal only on the recommendation of the Selection Committee as constituted in Article 32(a) herein above."
(3.) Learned counsel for the petitioner has submitted that the petitioner being retired from the post of Chief Engineer on 31.08.2015 from the Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited (the Corporation), has claimed his eligibility for appointment on the post of Managing Director of the Corporation. It is admitted that the Corporation is a Government Company and has been registered under the Companies Act, 1956. The Government has a deep and pervasive control over it. The post of Managing Director of the Corporation was advertised on 20.01.2015. The advertisement provided the maximum age of 62 years as on 01.01.2015 and the tenure of appointment was provided initially for two years. Pursuant to the aforesaid advertisement, the third respondent was appointed for two years and his term is going to expire on 12.02.2017. In the meanwhile, on 18.10.2014, the Company Secretary of the Corporation wrote a letter to the Principal Secretary, Energy Department, State of U.P. apprising him that the Corporation has decided to increase the maximum age limit for appointment on the post of Managing Director of the Corporation from 62 years to 65 years and also proposed to amend the existing Article 32(1)(b) to the said extent. The proposal of the Corporation is reduced as under: "The Chairman, Managing Director shall be appointed for a initial period of three years which may be extended from time to time with the approval of the Administrative Department of Government of Uttar Pradesh, subject to the age of the incumbent not being more than 65 years. Furthermore, the age of the incumbent applying for the post of Chairman, Managing Director shall not be more than 62 years as on the date of recruitment which shall be the 1st of January or 1st of July of the recruitment year, as the case may be.";