Ajit Singh Bains, J. - (1.) Devindar Pal petitioner was appointed as a temporary Clerk in the Deputy Commissioner's Office, Gujranwala, on 5th of June, 1941 He continued to serve as such up to 10th of April, 1942, when ha joined the Military service during the Second World War as a Combatant Clerk. He remained in the Military service up to 17th of July, 1948, oo which date he was released and whereafter on 6th of Nov., 1948, he joined as a Clerk in the Secretariat service of the Irrigation Department. He was promoted as an Assistant in the year 1953.
(2.) On the merger of Pepsu with Punjab on 1st of Nov., 1956, the Punjab Government issued a joint seniority list of the officials of the Irrigation Department (an extract of which is given in Annexure P4) wherein the petitioner is shown at Serial No. 116 and respondents Nos 4 to 10 at Serial Nos. 102,103,111, 117, 119, 126 and 139, respectively. On the reorganisation of the State of Punjab on 1st Nov., 1966, the petitioner and respondents Nos. 4 to 13 were allocated to the State of Haryana and their inter se seniority remained intact as it was determined on Nov. 1, 1956.
(3.) Subsequently, the Chief Engineer (of the Re-organised Punjab) of the Irrigation Department reshuffled the seniority of some officials after withdrawing the war service benefits towards seniority in their case. These officials filed a writ petition reported as Sunder Lal & others Vs. The State of Punjab, 1970 SLR 59 , which was decided by a Full Bench of this Court in which it was held that the new recruits, who were not appointed against permanent vacancies, were not entitled to war service benefits. It may be pointed out that the petitioner was not a party in writ petition.;