In Brief
Colonel Chander Ballabh Sharma, an army officer awarded two gallantry honours (Sena Medal and Vir Chakra), was not selected for promotion to Brigadier under a new quantified policy limiting gallantry award weightage to two selection boards. He had already received such weightage under the prior unrestricted policy. The High Court set aside the tribunal's rejection and ordered reconsideration. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that an officer who has already received all permissible benefits under successive policy frameworks cannot claim additional entitlement merely because policies were amended or selection board numbers reduced. Excellence demonstrated at an earlier career stage cannot be considered perpetually for future promotions.
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