IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CWJC No.14035 of 2005
SHEO KUMAR PASWAN, son of Sri Pragas Paswan, resident of
village and P.O. Tajanipur, Police Station - Bind, District - Nalanda,
Bihar.
Versus
1. THE STATE OF BIHAR through the Chief Secretary, Government
of Bihar, Patna.
2. The Commissioner cum Secretary, Department of Finance,
Government of Bihar, Patna.
3. The Commissioner cum Secretary, Personnel and Administrative
Reforms, Government of Bihar, Patna.
4. The Reservation Commissioner cum Administrative Reforms
Commissioner, Government of Bihar, Patna.
5. The Secretary, Bihar Public Service Commission, Jawahar Lal
Nehru Marg, Patna, Bihar.
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02. 13.9.2010 Writ of the petitioner is for a direction upon the
respondents to promote him on the post of Superintendent of
Government Press since there is a vacant post available for a long
period of time and petitioner has been asked to shoulder the
responsibility from time to time even of the said post.
Petitioner had moved this Court earlier for a direction
upon the respondents to grant him promotion on the post of Deputy
Superintendent from the year 1995 but that claim was rejected by the
High Court holding that promotion from the year 1999 was in order. In
so far as the claim for promotion of substantive post on the post of
Superintendent is concerned, the Finance Commissioner has rejected
the demand of the petitioner in terms of Annexure-12 stating that the
post of Superintendent of the Press ought to be filled up by direct
appointment in larger public interest and for the good of the
organization. That was the background under which writ came to be
filed.
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The stand of the respondents is that existence of the
vacancy by itself does not entitle the petitioner to be promoted to the
said post. In fact over the years the respondents have come to a
considered opinion that looking at the conditions of the Government
Press it was desirable to close it down or renovate it depending on the
final decision which may be taken in this regard.
Even otherwise no service condition with regard to the
filling of the post of Superintendent has been put in place till date.
Whether the post is going to be filled up on the basis of direct
appointment or promotion was yet another issue why petitioner
cannot be granted promotion to the said post.
It is also the stand that it is not only the petitioner but
looking at the exigencies of service the Gulzarbag Press was put
under the control of the Sub Divisional Magistrate posted at Patna City
and it is not a case that it is only the petitioner who has been
exercising effective control over the working by discharging the
responsibility of the Superintendent.
The stand of the respondents being what they are, no substantive
direction can be issued in favour of the petitioner to promote him on
the post of Superintendent since the promotion or appointment to the
post is dependant on the policy whether the institution as such will
continue to exist or not exist as such as well as the fact that there is no
service condition put in place with regard to the post in question. But
in case a modality is worked out and the petitioner draws any
right therefrom, the Court will not come in the way in
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lodging such claim if the occasion for the same arises.
The writ as of now is dismissed with above observation.
rkp ( Ajay Kumar Tripathi, J.)