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PETITIONER:

DR. P.P.C. RAWANI AND ORS. ETC.

Vs.

RESPONDENT:

UNION OF INDIA AND ORS.

DATE OF JUDGMENT29/10/1991

BENCH:

RANGNATHAN, S.

BENCH:

RANGNATHAN, S.

RAMASWAMI, V. (J) II

OJHA, N.D. (J)

CITATION:

1991 SCR Supl. (2) 109 1992 SCC (1) 331

JT 1991 (6) 534 1991 SCALE (2)1187

ACT:

Service Law:

Central Health Service---Doctors--Ad hoc

appointees--Regularisation of---Courts'directions for prepa-

ration of separate seniority list and creation of supernu-

merary posts opening promotional avenues to ad hoc appoint-

ees on par with regularly recruited doctors.

HEADNOTE:

In Civil Appeal No.3519 of 1984, filed by the appel-

lants, who were appointed as doctors on adhoc basis in the

Central Health Service on various dates between 1968 and

1977, praying for regularisation of their services with

reference to their original dates of appointments, this

Court, by its judgment dated 9.4.1987 and subsequent orders,

gave certain directions. Since the Union of India could not

implement the directions, the appellants filed the civil

miscellaneous petition for clarification of the earlier

orders passed by this Court in the Civil Appeal. Certain

other doctors who fall in the category of the appellants

(adhoc appointees) and who had not earlier filed writ peti-

tion before the High Court, filed writ petitions and inter-

vention applications before this Court praying for the

benefits as granted to the appellants.

It was contended by the Union of India that if regulari-

sation was granted to all the appellants and the like cate-

gories of doctors, the doctors regularly appointed in Group

A may get relegated to secondary position in view of the

fact that the appellants were appointed much earlier on

adhoc basis.

The regularly recruited doctors, not heard earlier, also

filed intervention applications praying that any order of

regularisation of the appellants and the similarly situated

doctors should ensure that their interests were not preju-

diced.

The appellants and the other similarly situated doctors

expressed their willingness to be considered for regular

appointments

110

only from 1.1.1973, this being the date on which the Group B

and Group A services were merged together by the Government

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of India. They also agreed to give up monetary claims on

account of revision of scales, regularisation or promotion

to which they would be entitled till 31.10.1991.

Disposing of the matters, this court,

HELD: 1. Each of the appellants will be treated as

regularised in Group A of the Central Health Service from

1.1.1973 or the date of his first initial appointment in the

service (though as an adhoc Group B doctor) whichever is

later. [p. 113 B]

2. In order to ensure that there is no disturbance in

the seniority and the promotional prospects of the regularly

recruited doctors there will be a separate seniority list in

respect of the appellants and their promotions shall be

regulated by such separate seniority list and such promo-

tions will only be in supernumerary posts to be created by

the Government. [p. 113 B-C]

3(a). Each of the appellants will be eligible for promo-

tion to the post of Senior Medical Officer or Chief Medical

Officer or further promotional posts therefrom taking into

account his seniority in the separate seniority list. [p.

113 D]

(b).The promotion of any of the appellants to the post

of Senior Medical officer, Chief Medical Officer and further

promotional post therefrom will be on par with the promotion

of the regularly recruited doctor who is immediately junior

to the concerned appellant on the basis of their respective

dates of appointment, e.g. if a regularly recruited doctor,

on the basis of the seniority list maintained by the Depart-

ment, gets a promotion as Senior Medical Officer or Chief

Medical Officer or further promotion thereafter, then the

appellant who was appointed immediately earlier to him will

also be promoted as a Senior Medical officer or Chief Medi-

cal Officer or further promotion therefrom (as the case may

be) with effect from the same date. [p. 113 D-F]

4. In order to avoid any conflict or any possibilities

of reversion, the post to which an appellant will be promot-

ed (whether as Senior Medical Officer or Chief Medical

Officer or on further promotion therefrom) should only be to

a supernumerary post. Such number of supernumerary posts

should be created by the Govern-

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ment as may be necessary to give effect to the above direc-

tions. No promotion will be given to any of the appellants

in the existing vacancies which will go only to the regular-

ly appointed doctors. [pp. 113 F-H, 114 A]

All the writ petitioners and interveners, falling in

the category of the appellants, would also be entitled to

the same reliefs as the appellants for all purposes of

seniority and promotion. [p. 114 A-C]

JUDGMENT:

CIVIL APPELLATE/ORIGINAL JURISDICTION: C.M.P. No.8076 of

1988 and I.A. Nos. 3,5,6 and 7 of 1990 In Civil Appeal No.

3519 of 1984.

From the Judgment and Order dated 3.4.1984 of the Delhi

High Court in W.P. No. 1144 of 1983.

WITH

Writ Petition (C) Nos. 2620-59 of 1985.

Under Article 32 of the Constitution of

India).

C.S. Vaidyanathan, Ms. Smitha Singh, K.A.Raja, A.K.

Srivastava,

Sushma Suri, C.V.S. Rao, Ms. C.K. Sucharita and Vimal

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Dave for the appearing parties.

The following Order of the court was delivered:

CMP No. 8076/1988: This is an application by certain

doctors of the Central Health Service for clarification of

the earlier orders passed by this Court in C.A. 3519/1984.

Actually, the appellants' grievance is that even though the

appeal was disposed of by the order of this court dated 9.4.

1987 and the directions given therein have been reiterated

in the subsequent orders of this Court, the Union of India

has not given proper effect to the directions given by this

Court.

Briefly, the appellants were originally appointed after

interview by selection committees but only as adhoc appoint-

ees in the above service. They were appointed on various

dates between 1968 and 1977. Their grievance is that dispite

their long service in the Department they were not regula-

rised with reference to their original dates of appointment.

The Union of India pointed out certain difficulties in

giving effect to the order of this Court of April, 1987 by

filing a review petition and then a clarification applica-

tion but these have been dismissed. The resultant position

is that all the appellants have to be regularised in Group A

of the Central

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Health Service w.e.f. 1.1.1973 or the date of their respec-

tive original appointments whichever is later. We may men-

tion here that this date 1.1.1973 is mentioned here because

the appellants have now expressed their willingness to be

considered for regular appointment only from this date and

not from any earlier date, this being the date on which the

group B and Group A services were merged together by the

Government of India on the recommendations of the Third Pay

Commission. The only difficulty experienced by the Union of

India in giving effect to the directions of this Court which

now subsists is that if regularisation is granted to all the

appellants, doctors who have been regularly appointed in

Group A after an interview by the Union Public Service

Commission may get relegated to secondary positions in view

of the fact that the appellants were appointed much earlier

though on an adhoc basis. These regularly recruited doctors

had not been heard earlier and they have now come up with

intervention applications praying that any order of regular-

isation of the appellants should ensure that their interests

are not prejudiced. This was also the anxiety of the Union

of India as expressed in the counter affidavit filed in this

Court.

After heating all the counsel, we were inclined to think

that while the appellants should get their rights which were

declared by this Court in its earlier orders, there should

at the same time be no prejudice to the doctors appointed

through regular recruitment by the Union Public Service

Commission. After some discussion, counsel for the appel-

lants agreed to put forward certain proposals which would

safeguard their interests and also at the same time not

prejudice the regular appointees through the Union Public

Service Commission. The essence of the proposal made by them

is that they may be treated to be a separate category with

their own seniority list and entitled to promotion in ac-

cordance with that seniority list, the problem of conflict

with the direct regular recruits being avoided by creation

of an appropriate number of supernumerary posts. The Union

of India is not agreeable to accept these proposals which

were set down by the appellants at our instance, in the form

of an affidavit. The proposals of the appellants have been

set down in an annexure to an affidavit filed by Dr. PPC

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Rawani and dated 16th July, 1991. However, after considering

the matter we are of the opinion that there is no way of

rendering justice to all the parties before us except by

accepting these proposals in the manner to be set down below

particularly because we find that while making the propos-

als, the appellants have also to some extent expressed the

willingness to forgo certain rights that might have accrued

to them in consequence of the earlier orders passed by this

Court. We are of the opinion that the proposals made are

reasonable in the circumstances of the case and that they do

not also in any way prejudice the rights of the regularly

recruited doctors.

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In view of this, we direct that the following proposal

be implemented by the Department by way of giving effect to

the order of this Court in C.A. 3519/84 dated April, 1987

and the subsequent clarificatory orders passed by this

Court:

The directions given are as follows:

1. Each of the appellants will be treated as

regularised in Group A of the Central Health

Service from 1.1.1973 or the date of his first

initial appointment in the service (though as

adhoc Group B doctor), whichever is later.

2. In order to ensure that there is no

disturbance of the seniority and the promo-

tional prospects of the regularly recruited

doctors there will be a separate seniority

list in respect of the appellants and their

promotions ('about which directions are given

below) shall be regulated by such separate

'seniority list and such promotions will only

be in supernumerary posts to be created as

mentioned below.

3. (a) Each of the appellants will be eligi-

ble for promotion to the post of Senior Medi-

cal Officer or Chief Medical Officer or fur-

ther promotional posts therefrom taking into

account his seniority in the separate seniori-

ty list which is to be drawn up as indicated

above.

(b) The promotion of any of the appellants to

the post of Senior Medical Officer, Chief

Medical Officer and further promotional post

therefrom will be on par with the promotion of

the regularly recruited doctor who is immedi-

ately junior to the concerned appellant on the

basis of their respective dates of appoint-

ment. In other words, if a regularly recruited

doctor, on the basis of the seniority list

maintained by the Department, gets a promotion

as Senior Medical Officer or Chief Medical

Officer or further promotion thereafter, then

the appellant who was appointed immediately

earlier to him will also be promoted as a

Senior Medical Officer or Chief Medical Offi-

cer or further promotion therefrom (as the

case may be) with effect from the same date.

4. In order that there may be no conflict

or any possibilities of reversion, the post to

which an appellant will be promoted (whether

as Senior Medical Officer or Chief Medical

Officer or on further promotion therefrom)

should only be to a supernumerary post. Such

number of supernumerary posts should be creat-

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ed by the Government as may be necessary to

give effect to the above directions. No promo-

tion will be given to any of the appellants in

the existing vacancies which will go only to

the regularly

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appointed doctors.

5. The appellants hereby agree to give up

all monetary claims on account of revision of

scales, regularisation or promotion to which

they would be entitled till 31.10. 199 1.

6. Apart from the appellants there are

certain doctors who fall in the same category

but who had not filed writ petitions before

the High Court. They have filed directly writ

petitions before this Court beating Nos.

2620-2659/1985 and intervention applications.

The intervention applications are allowed and

rule nisi is issued in the writ petitions of

which the other parties take notice. These

interveners and writ petitioner have to be

granted the same relief as the appellants. It

is made clear that all these applicants and

petitioners will be entitled to the same

reliefs as the appellants for all purposes of

seniority and promotion. All monetary claims

on account of revision of scales, regularisa-

tion or promotion till 31.10.1991 are given up

by These applicants and petitioners as well.

We direct that, in view of the long pendency of litiga-

tion before this Court, the Union of India should take

immediate steps to implement the above directions. The

directions should be given effect to latest by 31st March,

1992.

All the interim applications in the matter stand dis-

posed of in view of the fact that the main CMP itself has

been disposed of.

R.P. Matters dis-

posed of.

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