SHRI KESHAN KUMAR SINGH AND ANOTHER Vs. THE STATE OF BIHAR AND OTHERS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) By this petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India the petitioners have prayed for quashing the seniority list of 1973 batch of Police Sergeants dated 9.11.1979 as contained in Annexure -5 and also the seniority list dated 19.9.1981 with regard to the Police Sergeants of that batch as contained in Annexure -1. By these two annexures the petitioners have been shown juniors to some of the recruits of 1973 batch. So far petitioner no. 1 is concerned, he has been shown junior to respondent nos. 6 to 9 whereas petitioner no. 2 has been shown junior to respondents nos. 6 to 16. They have also prayed that respondent nos. 1 to 5 be commanded to place their names in Annexure 7 above the respondents for the purpose of considering the cases for promotion. The two petitioners along with 10 others including respondent nos. 6 to 16 were recruited through the Central Selection Board (the Selection Board) to the post of Police Sergeants. The date of appointment was the 25th of February, 1973. The petitioners and the concerned respondents were confirmed on the same date in 1975.

(2.) The case of the petitioners is that the seniority of the Sergeants recruited through the Selection Board was required to be determined according to the merit list prepared by the Selection Board. The position of the petitioners in the merit list was at serial nos. 5 and 6 respectively and they, therefore, were put in the seniority list at serial nos. 5 and 6 respectively. Respondent no. 4 issued Annexure 1 by which the seniority list of the Sergeants of 1973 batch was revised. By it the inter -se seniority of the recruits of 1978 batch was fixed taking into consideration their performance in the Police Training College, Hazaribagh (the P.T.C.). The petitioner no. 1 was placed at serial no. 8 and petitioner no. 2 was placed at serial no. 17. Annexure 5 was issued from the office of respondent no. 2 in which the list of the Police Sergeants of 1973 batch was circulated. The dates of confirmation and also the inter -se seniority were mentioned therein. Annexure 1 and 5 are illegal and bad in law as they were issued in contravention of the circular dated 12.12.1934 which is Annexure 2 to the writ petition. On 1.12.1981 respondent no. 4 from the office of respondent no. 2 issued the list of the names of 12 Police Sergeants for considering their cases for promotion to the posts of Sergeant Major, Annexure -7 The names in Annexure -7 were arranged according to the seniority. The persons who Were included in Annexure -7 are those who have been shown senior to the petitioners in the illegally prepared seniority list.

(3.) Respondent nos. 1 to 4, i.e., the State of Bihar and its Officers, have filed counter affidavit. No counter affidavit has been filed on behalf of the other respondents. At the time of hearing, respondent nos. 1 to 5 and 6 to 8 contested the case.