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IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION
CIVIL APPEAL NO. 2766 OF 2009
[ARISING OUT OF S.L.P.(C) NO. 16006 OF 2007]
SURENDRA SINGH BENIWAL ...APPELLANT
VERSUS
HUKAM SINGH & ORS. ...RESPONDENTS
ORDER
1 Leave granted. 1-A. This appeal is directed against the impugned judgment dated 26.6.2000
passed by the Division Bench of the High Court of Uttrakhand by means of which
the Division Bench dismissed the Special Appeal filed by the appellant against the
judgment of learned Single Judge who had dismissed the review petition filed by
the appellant.
2. The brief facts of the case are that respondent No.1 was appointed as
Lecturer in English on 15.1.1981 in Murli Manohar Inter College Ishurteel,
District Muzaffarnagar. Thereafter, respondent No. 1, on his own request, was
transferred from the Murli Manohar Inter College to Panna Lal Bhalla
Municipal Inter College, Hardiwar on 21.7.1997. Since then the respondent No.1
has been continuously working in the said institution as lecturer in English. The
appellant was promoted as
lecturer in Panna Lal Bhalla Municipal Inter College on 6.11.1989. The
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authorities concerned issued seniority list on 26.12.2000 showing the date of
appointment of respondent No. 1 as lecturer in English w.e.f. 15.1.1981 while the
date of seniority of appellant was shown as 6.11.1989. The seniority list was
issued after the approval of District Inspector of Schools. Appellant was given
ad-hoc promotion to the post of Principal on 1.7.2001.
3. Respondent No. 1 made a representation before the authority
concerned regarding his seniority and claimed that he should be placed at serial
number 1 in the seniority list on the basis of his seniority as lecturer as the
respondent No.1 was much senior to the appellant, but to no avail.
4. Feeling aggrieved by the seniority list, respondent No. 1 filed a writ
petition before the High Court. The learned Single Judge by order dated
8.12.2006 allowed the writ petition.
5. Aggrieved by the order of learned Single Judge, he appellant filed a
review petition which was rejected by order dated 23.2.2007.
6. Against the dismissal of review petition, the appellant filed a Special
Appeal before the High Court which was also dismissed on 20.6.2007. Hence, the
present appeal by special leave.
7. We have heard learned counsel appearing for the parties and have
gone through the record.
8. The short question involved in this case is about the interpretation of
Rule 61(2) of the Regulations framed under U.P. Intermediate Education Act,
1921 which reads as under:
“61(2): A teacher on being transferred in pursuance of this Chapter-
a) shall become the teacher of the institution to which he has been
transferred and his pay and service condition shall remain the same unless
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(b) shall be placed at the bottom of the seniority list of the teachers
serving on the same cadre and category in the institution.
(c) in compliance to the provisions of sub-clause(b) the service
rendered prior to the transfer in the institution from which the teacher
has been transferred shall be treated as service rendered to the
institution to which he has been transferred.”
9. A perusal of clause (b) of the aforesaid Rule shows that if a teacher
goes on voluntary transfer from one institution to another, then the transferee
teacher shall be placed at the bottom of the seniority list of the teachers serving
on the same cadre and category in the transferee institution. As regards clause
(c), in our opinion, it has to be read harmoniously with clause (b)
and so reading it, we are of the opinion that clause (c) deals with matters other
than seniority e.g. pensionary benefits etc. However, as regards seniority, the
clear rule has been laid down in clause (b) i.e. that if a teacher seeks voluntary
transfer from college/institution to another college/institution, the transferee
teacher shall be placed at the bottom of the seniority list. The reason for making
Rule 61(2)(b) is obvious. When a teacher applies for voluntary transfer from
one college to another, then if his seniority in the old college is maintained in the
new college, there would be great heart burning in the teachers in the transferee
college. Hence, the rule was made that if a teacher applies for voluntary transfer
from one college to another, such a transfer can only be done by placing the
transferee teacher at the bottom of the seniority list of the teachers serving on the
same cadre and category in the transferee institution.
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10. As regards the words “same cadre and category”, much has been made
out of it in the impugned judgment. However, we are of the opinion that the
interpretation given in the impugned judgment is not correct.
11. Since the respondent No. 1 applied for a voluntary transfer, obviously,
he has to be placed at the bottom of the seniority list of the lecturers already
working there. This is the meaning of the words”same cadre and category”.
12. In the facts and circumstances of the case, this appeal is allowed and
the judgment of the Division Bench as well as of learned Single Judge are set-
aside. The writ petition is dismissed. No orders.
…………………….J.
[ MARKANDEY KATJU ]
……………………..J.
[ H.L. DATTU ]
NEW DELHI
APRIL 23, 2009.