- (1.) The petitioner has prayed for issuance of a writ in the nature of mandamus directing the respondents to consider and promote her to the post of Senior Clerk and further to the post of Junior Assistant from the date when persons junior to her have been promoted.
(2.) It has been averred by the petitioner that she joined the service of the Bank as a Junior Clerk on 17.11.1983. She has passed her M.A. in Public Administration and her LL.B (Non Professional). She has also passed the CAII B Part-I examination. In addition to this, she has done one year diploma in Office Organisation and Procedure from the Panjab University, Chandigarh. She had also done the diploma in Office Management and diploma in Accounting from the Panjab University, Chandigarh. The petitioner is working as Junior Clerk for the last 17 years and till today she has not got even a single promotion. About 100 persons junior to her have been promoted as Senior Clerks. Even the persons who had joined as Peons and were junior to her as Junior Clerks have also been promoted as Senior Clerks. Details of the persons promoted are given in Annexure P/1 attached to this writ petition. Juniors of the petitioner have been promoted to the second higher post i.e. from Senior Clerks to that of Junior Accounts. The respondents circulated a tentative seniority list for the post of Junior Clerks as it stood on 28.12.1994 (Annexure P/2). By an order dated 20.12.1995, 58 Junior Clerks were promoted as Senior Clerks (Annexure P/3). In this order, persons upto Sr. No. 64 in the seniority list, Annexure P/2 were promoted. The case of the petitioner was considered and she was not found fit for promotion. By an order dated 15.3.1996, 17 more persons were promoted, the last person promoted being Tarlochan Singh Salh is at Sr. No. 81 in the seniority list Annexure P/2. Copy of this order is attached as Annexure P/4 to this writ petition. Again on 1.6.1996, still more Junior Clerks were promoted.
(3.) On 6.7.1996, the petitioner was conveyed adverse remarks in her ACR for the 1995-96 (Annexure P/5). It has been further averred that the only thing against the petitioner was that her relations with her colleagues were not cordial. Representation was submitted by her against these remarks but the petitioner was informed vide memo dated 19.11.1996 stating that her representation had been considered and rejected (Annexure P/6). About 40 employees of the Bank had given in writing that they had nothing against the petitioner and her relations with them are very cordial (Annexure P/7). The fact regarding the adverse report given to the petitioner was that there was a Clerk by the name of Mrs. Asha Rana. The said Mrs. Asha Rana had in fact physically assaulted the petitioner on 28.11.95 when she was on duty for which the petitioner had given a representation on 29.11.95 (Annexure P/8). Thereafter, the said Asha Rana alongwith one Karam Chand, Senior Assistant in the bank had started harassing the petitioner. A complaint in writing was given by the petitioner on 16.2.1996 (Annexure P/9).;