LI Network
Published on: 7 September 2023 at 14:36 IST
In an appeal concerning an order issued by Gulbarga University pursuant to Rule 252(b) of Karnataka Civil Service Rules, which relieved the appellant to accept a new appointment as ‘Assistant Registrar,‘ the court addressed two key questions:
(1) Whether this order should be considered as accepting ‘resignation’ to take up the new assignment?
(2) Whether, in this scenario, the appellant’s lien on the original/previous post would continue until they are permanently absorbed in the new department or cadre where they are subsequently appointed?
The court clarified that ‘lien’ signifies a civil servant’s right to hold a post substantively to which they are appointed.
This implies that a government servant cannot simultaneously hold two posts in two different cadres while maintaining a lien on both.
The court emphasized that a government servant’s lien only ceases to exist when they are substantively appointed, confirmed, or permanently absorbed in another post. Otherwise, the lien persists on the previous post.
Regarding Rule 252(b) of KCS Rules, the court determined that a ‘relieving order’ should not be equated with resignation.
The rule explicitly states that if a government servant takes up another appointment with proper permission, it should not be considered a resignation from public service.
Consequently, the court allowed the appeal and affirmed that the appellant’s lien on the original/previous post of ‘Office Superintendent’ would be maintained and deemed to continue from the date of their relief by Gulbarga University, i.e., April 8, 1993.
