O R D E R
The respondent was appointed as a Junior Engineer in CPWD on the basis of result of the competitive examinations held by the Director General (Works) on March 1, 1977. Later, as a result of the recruitment made by the U.P.S.C.in the year 1982, the respondent. was selected as Assistant Engineer and was appointed in that capacity by the Director General (Works), CPWD by proceedings dated July 14, 1987. The question arose: whether he would be entitled to be absorbed in the C.P.W.D. where he, admittedly, has worked for 18 years or be allotted to other department. The respondent has relied upon Rule 15 the Rules of the Combined Service Examination Rules, 1989 [for short, the "Rules"] which reads as follows :
"Departmental candidates will,
however be first considered for
appointment to service/posts in
their own department and only in
the event of non-availability of
vacancies therein or medical
unfitness of such candidates for
the services/posts under their own
departments, they shall be
considered for allotment to the
services/posts in other
Ministries/Departments on the basis
of preferences expressed by them."
Relying upon that Rule, the Tribunal in the impugned order dated January 23, 1996 made in O.A.No. 1565 of 1991 directed the petitioner to do as under:
"These four candidates were
Sarvshri Prakash Rawat, A.K.Das,
Mathura Prasad and Ravi Amrohi.
Learned counsel for the applicant
has made a statement before us that
the last named candidate, Shri Ravi
Amrohi, whose rank was 258 left the
department even though he had
initially accepted the offer of
appointment. If that be the
position, then it would be possible
to adjust the applicant against
his vacancy. Accordingly, the
respondents are directed to adjust
the applicant against the vacancy
of Shri Ravi Amrohi and in case
Shri Ravi Amrohi is still in
service then they should adjust the
applicant against the next
available vacancy with all
consequential benefits as regards
seniority. The appeal is
accordingly allowed. There will be
no order as to costs."
It is contended for the petitioners that the intention of the Government was that such of the candidates who have been in the department but secured higher ranking should be adjusted in the existing vacancies in the order of merit. If candidates do not come up in the merit, they have to be adjusted in other departments. Since the respondent had secured 295th rank as against others who were also similarly selected as reserved candidates, the respondent cannot get adjusted and appointed in CPWD. We find no force in the contention. It is true that as per list-annexure III his name was downgraded as against others whose names found place at Sl.Nos.259 and thereafter. But the reading of the list would indicate that the candidate who secured higher merit position than the respondent had been allotted in the order of merit to CPWD. In that behalf they relied upon the rule as amended in 1990 and sought to support the action takes thereunder. The Tribunal has rightly found that as on the date Rule 15 of the Rules was in vogue which envisages that when the recruitment comes to be made and candidate is duly selected, he should be appointed and adjusted also in the vacancies existing in the department in which he had worked. It clearly indicates that the candidates working in the respective departments are first required to be adjusted unless there is no vacancy existing or they are found medically unfit to hold that post. In that event, they are required to be adjusted in other departments. The subsequent amendment does not have any effect of taking away his right to be adjusted when the Rule was in vogue. The Tribunal was, therefore, right in giving direction as indicated above .
The special leave petition is accordingly dismissed.