- (1.) Both the petitioners had joined service as Wool Graders in the Sheep and Wool Department of the Government of Rajasthan. Both of them were substantive Sheep Wool Graders, in that Department. Both of them were declared surplus along with 11 other persons. Sobhag Chand Mathur's name appears at Sr. No. 1 in Annexure/1 The name of the petitioner, Ghanshyam appears at Sr. No. 5 and the name of the petitioner, Kishan Singh Rathore appears at Sr. No. 9 and that of respondent No. 3 at Sr. No. 13. They were sent to the General Administrative Department for absorption. Finally, they were absorbed as Enforcement Inspectors in the Food & Civil Supplies Department of the Government of Rajasthan. Petitioners, Shobhag Chand Mathur and respondent No. 3 Shyam Sundar Sharma were placed below those who were tempoary Enforcement Inspectors of the Food & Civil Supplies Department. Some of the erstwhile Wool Graders who were absorbed as Enforcement Inspector made representations for assignment of seniority on the basis of their substantive appointment as Wool Graders. They claimed that they must be treated substantive Inspector from the date of their absorption on 21st March, 1973. Two of them namely Shobhag Chand Mathur and Shyam Sundar Sharms, having failed to persuade the departmental authorities to accept their representation, filed appeals before the Rajasthan Civil Service Appellate Tribunal. They could not persuade the Tribunal to hold that they are entitled to be placed as senior to the enforcement Inspector of the Department, who were working on temporary basis. Undaunted by their failure before the Tribunal, Shobhag Chand Mathur and Shyam Sundar Sharma filed writ petitions bearing DBCW No. 602/83 and DBCW No. 662/83. The Division Bench decided the same by its order dated 10th February, 1992. The Devision Bench of the High Court passed the following order :- "In this view of the matter, these writ petitions arc partly allowed, the order dated 3.9.1982 of the Rajasthan Civil Services Appellate Tribunal is set aside and the petitioners will be entitled to all consequential benefits in accordance with the Rules as if they were appointed as Enforcement Inspectors in substantive capacity on 21.3.1973 and shall rank senior to all those Enforcement Inspectors who were confirmed after 21.3.1973. We feel that the petitioners did not take any steps upto 1977 in spite of being aggrieved by the non-inclusion of their names in the earlier seniority lists. Hence, the consequential eligibility for next promotions is allowed from 1977."
(2.) Those two petitioners felt that the last portion of the High Court's order was detrimental to their interest and, therefore, they filed review petition No. 70/1992, which was allowed by the High Court on 20th August, 1992. The High Court deleted the last portion of the order in so far as the petitioners had been denied the benefit of eligibility for promotion prior to 1977.
(3.) Respondents No. 1 and 2 implemented the order of the High Court by assigning seniority to Shobhag Chand Mathur and Shyam Sundar Sharma at Sr. No. 27A and 27B. These two petitioners were promoted as Assistant District Supply Officer on 21st October, 1993. The petitioners are junior to Shobhag Chand Mathur, but they are senior to Shyam Sundar and, once the High Court finally gave relief to Shobhag Chand Mathur and Shyam Sundar, the petitioners made representation for giving them the benefit of seniority at par with Shobhag Chand Mathur and Shyam Sundar. They made several representations and ultimately served a notice of demand for justice through their counsel. They remained unsuccessful in persuading the Government to give effect to the judgment of the High Court dated 10th Feb., 1992 read with order dated 20th Aug. 92 and having failed to get relief from the administration, the two petitioners sought a writ of mandamus for the purpose of assignment of seniority above those Enforcement Inspector who were appointed on temporary basis in the Department as on 21st March, 1973. They have claimed that one Shyam Sundar Sharma has been given the benefit of seniority by treating him as substantive Enforcement Inspector as on 21st March, 1973. Seniority and promotion are the bedrock of the petitioners'claim who have pleaded that once the High Court has accepted the claim of Shobhag Chand Mathur and Shyam Sundar and has declared that the erstwhile substantive Wool Graders of the Sheep & Wool Department are entitled to be treated as substantive Enforcement Inspectors in the Deptt. of Food & Civil Supplies, it is not open to the Departmental authorities to apply the method of pick and choose from amongst those who were absorbed in the year 1973.;