P.K.BALASUBRAMANYAN, J. - (1.) THE appellant was an employee of the Mineral Area Development Authority, Dhanbad. He went to work as Estate Officer in the Jharkhand State Electricity Board on deputation. There were certain other retired employees re -employed in the Jharkhand State Electricity Board. There were also some deputations. The Power Engineer Service Association, Jharkhand State Electricity Board, filed a writ petition, WP (S) No. 3746 of 2001 complaining that the employment opportunities of officers of the Board are affected by re -employment of retired Board employee and by taking officers on deputation and hence, a direction should be issued to the State Electricity Board not to employ retired personnel and not to take engineers from other organizations on deputation and for other incidental reliefs. In the writ petition, one officer on deputation was impleaded as respondent No. 4. The learned Single Judge on hearing the writ petition and on scrutiny of the file produced before him by the Board, came to the conclusion that the re - employment of retired personnel of the Board was not justified and that the Board was bound to consider first the claim of the officers presently working in the Board for promotion to the available posts. The Court also quashed the employment on deputation of respondent No. 4 in the writ petition. Thus, the writ petition was allowed.
(2.) THE State Electricity Board filed a petition for review, Civil Review No. 28 of 2002. The learned Single Judge called for the file and found, also based on the allegations in the affidavit filed on behalf of the writ petitioner Association, that there were serious irregularities in the appointment of the appellant herein, who was not a party to the writ petition or to the review petition and it is to be held that the Board had violated the direction of this Court in extending the deputation of the appellant herein with effect from 1.7.2002. The Review Petition was dismissed finding that there was no error calling for correction. But notice was issued to the officers of the Board to show cause why action should not be taken against them for trying to circumvent the directions of the Court in the writ petition. The Court also directed that all officers who have been re -appointed/ engaged in any capacity or against any non -cadre post, will not discharge their duties as such until further orders. The appellant filed the present appeal with a petition for Leave to Appeal submitting that he is prejudiced by the order on the Review Petition and the observations made therein and that the learned Single Judge was not justified in making those observations when he was not a party either to the writ petition or to the review petition. He also contended that he was on deputation from the Mineral Area Development Authority, to an ex -cadre post and such deputation to an ex - cadre post was not covered or intended to be covered, by the judgment rendered in the writ petition. This Court admitted the appeal and issued an order directing maintenance of the status quo as regards the appellant. The appellant had come to the Jharkhand State Electricity Board on deputation on 1.7.2001 for a term of one year. On the expiry of that term, the deputation had been extended by another year on 1.7,2002 till 1.7.2003. While the appeal was pending, that period of deputation also expired on 1.7.2003. On that day, the State Electricity Board, even without seeking permission of the Court which had directed maintenance of the status quo, extended the deputation of the appellant for a further period until orders are passed by the High Curt in this appeal.
(3.) THOUGH the appeal was originally directed to be posted along with LPA Nos. 587 of 2002 and 561 of 2002, which challenged the original decision of the learned Single Judge, it was subsequently felt that it was necessary to hear this appeal independent to those appeals in the circumstances obtaining and the appeal was separated. Thereafter the appeal was heard separately and in detail.;