PARITOSH KUMAR MUKHERJEE, J. - (1.) A judical interpretation of Regulation 14(4) of the West Bengal State Electricity Board Employees' Service Regulations (hereinafter referred to as 'the said Service Regulations') is called for, in the instant writ petition filed on behalf of the West Bengal State Electricity Board Engineers' Association and Anr. (hereinafter called 'the petitioners herein').
(2.) THE said provisions of Service Regulations is set out hereinbelow: 14(4). In the case of promotion, the appropriate Selection Committee shall consider the claims of all candidates eligible for promotion and examine their service records. It may also hold an examination and/or interview of the candidates. Thereafter it will advise the appointing authority as to the candidates deserving promotion. Although in the writ petition, the vires of the said Service Regulations has not been challenged in express terms, but at the hearing, Mr. Pravat Kumar Sengupta., learned Senior Advocate appearing with Mr. Bhaskar Gupta., Mr. P. Guha and Mr.Pranab Kumar Dutta, argued that the said Regulation 14(4) gives unguided and uncanalised power to the West Bengal State Electricity Board (hereinafter referred to as 'the Board') and the engineers, who are thus affected by the arbitrary, whimsical, uncanalised and unfettered exercise of power by the Board expressed, in their diverse action and/or conduct in effecting promotions by way of 'interview' only, through Regulation 14(4) of the Service Regulations which cannot be sustained in law and should be struck down.
(3.) MR . Sengupta further submitted that from the averments made in the writ petition, it would be evident that the respondent Board had althroughout been acting and, to be precise, after July 19, 1984, in an illegal and arbitrary fashion.;