In Brief
Girish Kumar was promoted to Office Superintendent in 2007, but a colleague (respondent 3) was given a deemed promotion date of 2005 under the Seniority Rules. This placed respondent 3 senior to Girish, leading to his promotion to Section Officer in 2008. Girish challenged this, arguing respondent 3 had not actually worked three years in the prior grade as required for eligibility. The Supreme Court held that the Seniority Rules, which set deemed dates for seniority purposes, cannot be used to satisfy eligibility requirements under the Recruitment Rules, which require actual continuous service. Since respondent 3 had not worked the required period in the prior grade, he was ineligible. Girish's appeal was allowed.
The lawyer headnote and full judgment text are available to registered users.