The Odisha Government seems to be in a dilemma as to how to follow two contradictory orders by the State Administrative Tribunal (SAT) on a particular issue.
A SAT Bench had rejected six applications that were filed opposing a promotion by justifying the promotion that had been given on the basis of the seniority list, prepared for the Overseers of the Agriculture Department in accordance with the Supreme Court’s “catch up” policy in February 2013.
However, the SAT in three more other cases registered against the previous promotion gave a contradictory directive by accepting the applications stating that the promotion was not justified.
While the junior officials in the higher ranks under reserved category get promotion on the basis of Roster Point Vacancy, delay occurs in case of senior officials under unreserved category in lower ranks, said a senior officer in the Agriculture Department.
The Government in a 2002 notification had announced that seniority would be counted from the day the officials have got promotion. However, referring to the apex court’s judgment, the Orissa High Court in case of Ragnajit Ray rejected the Government notification.
It stated that the candidate under unreserved category having late promotion is entitled to be on the top of the seniority list against the junior officials under reserved categories. On the basis of the directive, the promotion has been given following the Catch Up policy in all the Government offices.
On the basis of the Catch Up policy, the seniority list of Agriculture Overseers was prepared in 2013 and, accordingly, 72 Agriculture Overseers were promoted as Assistant Agriculture Officer. Challenging the promotion, six cases were filed in the SAT’s Cuttack Bench and three more separate cases were registered in the Bhubaneswar Bench in 2013.
Hearing the arguments, a SAT Bench rejected six petitions registered in Cuttack by justifying the promotion. However, another SAT Bench while hearing three separate cases filed in Bhubaneswar termed the promotion, which was given on basis of the Catch Up policy, illegal and unjustified. It directed the Government to give promotion to the petitioners by placing them on the top of the seniority list.
The Government is now in a fix as to how to implement the recent order as several issues are expected to occur while executing it.