Case Note & Summary
The judgment arose from a series of civil appeals concerning the seniority of Assistant Engineers in the Rural Engineering Department of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. The core issue was whether the ad hoc service rendered by these engineers before their regularisation should be counted for seniority. The appellants, who were originally appointed ad hoc in 1985, had their services regularised in 1989 under the Uttar Pradesh Regularisation of Ad hoc Appointments Rules. A final seniority list was prepared in 2001, which did not count their ad hoc service. The High Court had previously ruled in favor of counting ad hoc service based on the Supreme Court's decision in Narendra Kumar Tripathi, which was later challenged. The Supreme Court found that the earlier decisions in Santosh Kumar and Archana Shukla, which stated that ad hoc service should not be counted for seniority, were not considered in the Tripathi case, rendering that decision per incuriam. The Court ultimately ruled that the seniority of the ad hoc appointees should be determined only from the date of their regularisation, thus dismissing the appeals and upholding the final seniority list prepared in 2016. The Court emphasized the importance of adhering to established precedents in administrative law regarding seniority and regularisation.
Headnote
A) Administrative Law - Seniority Determination - Counting of Ad Hoc Service - Uttar Pradesh Regularisation of Ad hoc Appointments (Second Amendment) Rules, 1989 - The court held that services rendered by Assistant Engineers as ad hoc should not be counted for seniority, as per the binding precedents interpreting the relevant rules. The decision in Narendra Kumar Tripathi was found to be per incuriam due to the omission of earlier binding decisions. (Paras 6-7).
Issue of Consideration
Whether the services rendered as ad hoc prior to regularisation should be counted for seniority purposes.
Final Decision
The Supreme Court dismissed the appeals, holding that the services rendered by the Assistant Engineers as ad hoc should not be counted for seniority, reaffirming the binding precedents that govern the determination of seniority.
Law Points
- seniority determination
- ad hoc appointments
- regularisation rules
- binding precedents
- per incuriam decisions
