Shri Dharam
Pal & Ors Vs. The Food Corporation of India & Ors [1997] INSC 796 (24 October 1997)
SUJATA
V. MANOHAR, D.P. WADHWA
ACT:
HEADNOTE:
THE
24TH DAY OF OCTOBER, 1997 Present:
Hon'ble
Mrs. Justice Sujata V. Manohar Hon'ble Mr. Justice D.P.Wadhwa S.B. Sanyal, Sr.
Adv., (R.K.Gupta) Adv. for Rajesh, Adv. with him for the Petitioners.
G.L. Sanghi,
Sr.Adv., and Y.P.Rao, Adv. with him for the Respondents In-person for the
Respondent No.5
The
Following Judgment of the Court was delivered:
D.P. Wadhwa,
J.
In
this petition under Article 32 of the Constitution the five petitioners have
prayed for the following reliefs:
"(a)
issue declaration that the formation of Accounts Cadre in the Food Corporation
of India made in the year 1997 is illegal,
void;
(b)
issue a writ of certiorar quashing the Circular No.3 of 1984 dated 17.1.1987
Order No. 57 of 1987 dated 26.3.1987, No.80 of 1987, dated 22.4.1987 and No.87
of 1987 dated 29.12.1987 issued by the Food Corporation of India/Respondent
No.1;
(c)
direct the Food Corporation of India by issuing an appropriate writ in that
nature mandamus that all the optees in pursuant of Notification dated 5.2.1977
and 17.11.1977/ and Notification No.3 of 1984 dated 17.1.1984 be placed in
their respective cadres and may declare that all the optees aforesaid shall
remain placed in their respective cadres where before 1977;
(d) issue
a writ in the nature of prohibition prohibiting the respondents from making
further promotion in the Accounts Cadre;
(e) to
declare the Notification dated 5.2.1977 and 17.11.1977 issued by Food
Corporation of India as illegal and void;
(f) any
other writ or writs, order or orders, direction or directions:
(g) allow
the costs." The petitioners are working in the Food Corporation of India, a Corporation, established under
the Food Corporation Act, 1964.
The
Corporation with the approval of the Central Government took a decision to from
a separate Accounts Cadre from the level of Assistant Grade-III onwards. A
circular to this effect was issued on February 2, 1977. It was stated in the circular that
Accounts Cadre at the level of AG III, AG II and AG I would initially be formed
by transfer of the qualified personnel from the General Administration Cadre.
Options
were, therefore, called for from the AG i in General Administration Cadre
possessing a degree in Commerce, Mathematics or Statistics for transfer to the
Accounts Cadre as AG i (A/Cs), It was also mentioned that the options of such
AG I (General Administration for transfer to the Accounts Cadre would be subject
to their passing a departmental test, details of which would be intimated in
due course. Similar options were called from AG II and AG III (General;
Administration) for their transfer to the grade of AG II (A/Cs) and AG III
(A/Cs) respectively. A notification incorporation the policy decision was
issued on February 5,
1977 and accordingly
the Corporation amended the Food Corporation of India (Staff) Regulation, 1971. If we refer to the notification
initial recruitment to Assistant Grade-III in the newly formed Accounts Cadre
was from Assistant Grade III of General Cadre possessing the prescribing
qualifications who would be transferred to the Accounts Cadre on the basis of
option.
Subsequently
by notification dated November 17, 1977 an amendment was issued which modified
the earlier notification dated February 5, 1977 which provided that initially
all the Assistant Managers, Accounts Grade I, II and III belonging to all
cadres and possessing the prescribed qualification for respective posts and who
were considered to be competent and capable and possessed the aptitude for
accounts work would be transferred to the Accounts Cadre on the basis of such
option. It had also been provided that the optees were to be subject to a very
intensive training course and that those selected in the new accounts cadre
were to be given necessary training at the Corporation's Zonal and Central
Training Institutes. Four of the petitioners are Assistant Grade I and the 5th
is Assistant Grade III in the General Cadre (Administration).
It is
difficult to understand how can there be any challenge if the Corporation
decides to form a separate Accounts Cadre considering the administrative
necessity in its working. We also fail to see as to how the petitioners who are
similarly placed like other employees in the general cadre, prejudiced by
formation selection of the separate Accounts Cadre and consequent amending of
the Regulations prescribing the qualification for the initial absorption in the
newly created cadre and subsequent filling up of the posts in that cadre. The
petitioners cannot challenge the qualification fixed by the Corporation for
absorption or subsequent recruitment in the Accounts Cadre. It is not the case
of the petitioners that they possessed the requisite qualifications for
absorption in the Accounts Cadre or even if they were qualified they gave any
option for absorption in the Accounts cadre or their absorption was not acceded
to. Grievance of the petitioners appears to be that the optees who went to the
Accounts Cadre go accelerated promotion which the petitioners were unable to
get while still working in the General Administration Cadre. That is a chance
an employee takes in any service. The petitioners refer to as many as 12 such
officials who had been promoted to the posts of Assistant Manager (Accounts)
when they possessed qualifications upto Matric, Higher Secondary or
Intermediate and they were lower in seniority to the petitioners in the General
Administration Cadre. Apart from mentioning their names, qualifications and
their placement in the seniority no particular have been given if those
officials were first initially taken in Grade III (Accounts) and subsequently
got promotions. In the absence of any particulars it is not possible for us to
accept the plea of the petitioners.
Corporation
issued a circular on January
17, 1984 inviting
reference to its earlier circulars of 1981 providing for withdrawal of options
from Accounts Cadre within a particular period. Again options were given to the
employees to opt out of the Accounts Cadre and go back to the original cadre.
Options were also given to category II and III employees who were interested to
join the Accounts Cadre and who possessed necessary qualification and/or
requisite working experience prescribed for each post in the Accounts Cadre in
category II and III posts. In the circular of January 17, 1984 it was clearly
stipulated that those employees who would opt out of the Accounts Cadre would
go to their original Cadre and their transfer to the original cadres would be
in the same grade fro which they were transferred to the Accounts Cadre and
that their seniority would, therefore, be maintained in the original cadre as
it was before their transfer to the Accounts Cadre, It was clarified that if
some of the juniors in the original cadre stood promoted to higher grades the optees
who would stand reverted on account of their option should also be considered
for promotion as per the rules/instructions. It is again difficult to
understand the grievance of the petitioners on this Account as well. They
cannot say that the employees who had given their options once to go to the
Accounts Cadre should be stopped from all times to come back to the original
cadre even if they retained their old position in the seniority in the General
Cadre. We do not find any valid ground for the petitioners to challenge the
decision of the Corporation to give the options to the employees in the
Accounts Cadre to revert back to the original cadre. All the circulars to which
challenge have been made follow the general principles laid in the earlier
circulars. We find that in pursuance of Circular dated January 17, 1984 as many as 170 employees gave
options to revert back from accounts cadre to their original cadre.
They
perhaps did not find the Accounts Cadre to be lucrative enough to remain there.
It was newly constituted cadre and the employees who gave their options to go
to that cadre subsequently did not find the usefulness of that cadre for their
service for some reasons or the others and the authorities had given them
options to got back to the original cadre. Petitioners cannot make any
grievance on that account We do not find any merit in this petition and dismiss
the same. There will, be nor order as to costs.
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