ORDER
1. Heard learned Counsel for the petitioners and learned Counsel for the opposite parties.
2. Initially, the petitioner-Pramod Kumar Mishra filed this writ petition with a prayer to direct O.Ps. 1 to 3 to give him the notional seniority in the cadre of Assistant Accounts Officer in Grade E-1 with effect from 17.7.1990 at par with his counterpart, who got the promotion to the said cadre having passed the CIL Accounts Examination, Part-I and II in the year 1989 as per the amended cadre scheme circulated by O.P.2 with all consequential service and financial benefit with effect from the said date and to reconsider his case for promotion to the post of Accounts Officer in Grade E-2 at par with O.Ps. 5 and 6.
3. The brief facts leading to this writ petition are that the petitioner was appointed as Accounts Clerk Grade-I, in South Eastern Coal Field Ltd. (SECL), South Balanda, Jagannath Area in the District of Dhenkanal, which is a subsidiary of Coal India Ltd. In the year 1989, the petitioner appeared and passed the CIL Accounts Examination Parts-I and II, the result of which was communicated to all the Area Finance Managers on 2.3.1990. On 6.3.1990 pursuant to the amendment of Common Coal Cadre in respect of Accounts discipline, the South Eastern Coal Field Ltd. by letter No. 761 dated 6.3.1990 informed all the Areas for submission of Bio Data in respect of those candidates, who have passed CIL Accounts Examination Parts-I and II for consideration of promotion to the post of Assistant Accounts Officer/Accounts Officer by 15.3.1990 (Annexure-3). As the petitioner was eligible for the same, his Bio Data was duly submitted to the SECL through proper channel along with two others (O.Ps. 5 and 6).
4. According to the petitioner, the SECL in violation of the provisions of Amended Common Coal Cadre, vide Annexure-2, reviewed its earlier letter No. 761 dated 6.3.1990 (Annexure-3) and issued a letter bearing No. 794 dated 8.3.1990 stating therein that the Bio Data of those persons who were in technical and Supervisor Grade-A should only be forwarded for consideration for appointment/promotion to the post of Assistant Accounts Officer, E-1, for which the petitioner was not considered and his Bio Data was returned to the Area Finance Manager by the Deputy Chief Personnel Manager of SECL. Thereafter, on 22.6.1990 the SECL Headquarter vide its letter dated 22.6.1990 promoted the petitioner to the post of Accounts Assistant in Clerical Special Grade instead of Assistant Accounts Officer, E-1. The further claim of the petitioner is that subsequently, the petitioner was promoted to the Post of Accountant in T & S Grade-A ignoring his claim for promotion to the post of Assistant Accounts Officer, E-1. According to the petitioner, in view of Annexure-2, as he has succeeded in CIL Accounts Examination, Part-I, he should have been promoted to the said post when similarly situated persons like Debasis Mukherji, U.D.C. and A. K. Karmakar, U.D.C. who had qualified in the CIL Accounts Examination, Part-I along with him, were allowed to hold the said post.
5. Thereafter, the Coal India Ltd. Accounts Examination was held in the year 1990, result of which was published in the month of October, 1991 and the persons who came out successful in the said Examination much after the petitioner has already been given promotion by the CCL right from October, 1992.
6. The sum and substance of the grievance of the petitioner is that though the petitioner passed CIL Accounts Examination in the year 1990, he was promoted to the post of Accountant in T & S Grade-A, whereas persons similarly situated having same qualification were promoted to the post of Assistant Finance Officer, E-1. Against the aforesaid discrimination, the petitioner after creation of Mahanadi Coal Fields Ltd. (MCL) made several representations to the General Manager, Finance, MCL, Sambalpur, highlighting his grievance for consideration of his case in terms of the provisions enumerated in Annexure-2 and the same was forwarded to the Deputy General Manager (Personnel) vide his note sheet dated 25.2.1993 stating therein that a departmental candidate who passes the CIL, Part-I Examination, is eligible to become Assistant Accounts Officer in E-1 Grade even without any experience. It is also indicated in the note sheet that in this connection though an application of the petitioner was forwarded to the Personnel Department, till date no action has been taken. It was expected that the said application would not meet such a fate. Ultimately, on 26.5.1993 the petitioner was promoted to the post of Assistant Accounts Officer E-1, which was much after his juniors got promotion and subsequently, he was also promoted to the rank of E-3 in Accounts Discipline and died in harness on 4.4.2005.
7. Thereafter, the petitioner was substituted by his legal heirs, who are appearing in this writ petition. This Court by its order dated 29.11.2004 directed that a competent and responsible Officer of the Coal India shall file an affidavit clarifying the position as regards Annexure-2 specifically whether the same was applicable for promotion of an employee to the post of Assistant Accounts Officer/Assistant Finance Officer in E-1, after acquiring qualification of CIL Accounts Examination Part-I irrespective of the post he is holding.
8. An affidavit has been filed by the Personnel Manager, Coal India Ltd., West Bengal, O.P.1, paragraphs-3 & 5 whereof are quoted as follows:
3. That it is humbly stated that any person working in any grade in Coal India will be promoted to the post of Assistant Accounts Officer/Assistant Finance Officer in E-1 Grade, if he passes the CIL Accounts Examination Part-i. No experience in the grade below the rank of Assistant Accounts Officer/Assistant Finance Officer is required for being promoted to the rank of Assistant Accounts Officer/Assistant Finance Officer.
5. That draft global seniority list of Assistant Accounts Officer/Assistant Finance Officer E-1 grade as on 1.4.1993 was prepared by Coal India Limited taking into account the date of promotion to the said grade. As the petitioner was not promoted to E-1 grade by 1.4.1993, his name did not find place in the said seniority list. In the integrated seniority list as on 1.4.1995 (pages-54 to 56 of the writ petition) his position is shown as serial No. 116 as per his date of promotion. Coal India Ltd. by letter dated 6.1.1998 (Annexure-21) did not accede to the request of the petitioner for grant of notional seniority to the petitioner with effect from 17.7.1990 as the acceptance of the same would have led to serious administrative difficulties. Petitioner’s position in the seniority list would have gone above 90 Officers, who by that time had enjoyed the position for about 5 to 8 years. This would have opened the floodgate of litigation. Coal India had given a quietus to this issue by not acceding to the request of the petitioner to give him notional seniority with effect from 17.7.1990.
9. The above averments made in paragraph-3 make it clear that the petitioner is eligible to be promoted to the post of Assistant Accounts Officer/Assistant Finance Officer E-1 as the petitioner has passed CIL Accounts Examination Part-I since no experience in the grade below the rank of Assistant Accounts Officer/Assistant Finance Officer was required for such promotion. In view of the averments made in paragraph-5, there is no difficulty in our part to allow the prayer of the petitioner to the extent that the petitioner is entitled to get promotion to the post of Assistant Accounts Officer/Assistant Finance Officer in E-1 grade on and from 17.7.1990. So far as paragraph-5 is concerned, it is of no consequence as the petitioner has already expired.
10. In view of such circumstances, we direct opposite parties 1 to 3 to treat the petitioner to have been promoted to the post of Assistant Accounts Officer in grade E-1 with effect from 17.7.1990, calculate all financial benefits from the said date and release the same to the legal heirs of the petitioner along with all consequential benefits within a period of three months from the date of communication of this order.
11. With the above observation and direction, the writ petition is disposed of.
12. Issue urgent certified copy.