Sakunjay Vyas
Published On: March 3, 2022 at 11:35 IST
The Two Judge Bench of Justice K.M. Joseph and Justice Hrishikesh Roy of Supreme Court overturned Uttarakhand High Court, Division Bench order that dismissed the appeals despite an order of merit present in the favor of the appellants.
The Supreme Court recently ruled that due consideration to be provided according to the status of the promotion post and the criterion for promotion specified in the Rules.
The Two Judge Bench of Justice K.M. Joseph and Justice Hrishikesh Roy were hearing an appeal against Uttarakhand High Court, Division Bench that had dismissed the appeals of the appellant by unfortunately referred to the incorrect order of merit while overlooking the applicable order of merit.
The Apex Court was saddened to evidence that the High Court while dismissing the appeals referred to the incorrect order of merit, and has not taken into consideration other proceedings and findings of the Cantonment Board.
The Apex Court on hearing the learned counsel for the parties and also read the relevant materials on record found that the appellant had an unblemished service record all throughout her career and was also found to be senior to the respondent by the Cantonment Board in a prior meeting.
Further the Court found out that disciplinary actions were taken against the respondent and he was penalized in pursuance of the same.
The Apex Court also mentioned two attributes for selecting a suitable candidate for the “Selection category” jobs, i.e. merit of the candidate and the inter-se seniority.
“…Suitability for the selection post was attributable to two factors i.e. merit of the candidate and the inter-se seniority.”
the Court said.
As a result, the Apex Court overturned Uttarakhand High Court, Division Bench order that dismissed the Appeals despite an order of merit present in the favor of the appellants and allowed the appeals by setting aside the impugned judgment.