30 August 1996
Supreme Court
Download

S. KALYANASUNDARAM AND ORS. Vs STATE OF TAMIL NADU AND ORS.


1

http://JUDIS.NIC.IN SUPREME COURT OF INDIA Page 1 of 5  

PETITIONER: S. KALYANASUNDARAM AND ORS.

       Vs.

RESPONDENT: STATE OF TAMIL NADU AND ORS.

DATE OF JUDGMENT:       30/08/1996

BENCH: K. RAMASWAMY, G.B. PATTANAIK

ACT:

HEADNOTE:

JUDGMENT:                          O R D E R      Delay condoned.      Leave granted.      These appeals  by special leave arise from the order of the Tamil  Nadu Administrative Tribunal Madras Bench made on July 13,  1993 made  in T.A.  No.131 of  1990.  The admitted position is  that Tamil  Nadu Urban Land Tax Act [for short, the   "Act"] was  amended so  as to  extend  the  provisions thereof to  madurai, Coimbatore,  Trichy and  Sales.  It was further amended inter alia so as to extend the provisions of the Act  to the  belt areas  of Madras City.  As regards the appointments to  the post of ministerial staff therein, they are governed  by the  Tamil Nadu  Ministerial Service  Rules [for short, the "Rules"].  Rules 3 of the Rules provides the method of  appointments and  promotions. Rule  3  [hh]  (ii) reads as under:      "3. Method of Recruitment :      (hh) Besides  promotion as provided      in rule 4, appointment to the posts      of Superintendents  and  Assistants      in  the  office  of  the  Board  of      Revenue (Land  Reforms) may be made      as specified  in Column  (2) of the      Table   below,   if   no   suitable      candidates   are    available   for      promotion  in  the  office  of  the      Board of Revenue (Land Reforms.).                THE TABLE       POSTS         METHOD OF                     APPOINTMENT      (1)Superintendents  By recruitment                          by transfer                          from among                          Deputy                          Tahsilders and                          Tahsildars in                          the Tamil Nadu                          Revenue Subb-                          rdinate                          Service.

2

http://JUDIS.NIC.IN SUPREME COURT OF INDIA Page 2 of 5  

    (ii) Assistants     By transfer                          from among                          Assistants in                          the  district                          Revenue Units.      (1) Appointment  to  the  posts  of      Superintendents  (Selection  Grade)      in  the  office  of  the  Board  of      Revenue    (Urban     Land    Tax)-      Commissioner of  Urban Land Tax and      in the  Offices  of  the  Assistant      Commissioners of  Urban  Land  Tax,      shall be  made  by  promotion  form      among the  Superintendents  in  the      Urban Land  Tax Department  and  in      other  Branches  of  the  Board  of      Revenue  or   by   recruitment   by      transfer  form   the  category   of      Deputy Tahsildars in the Tamil Nadu      Revenue Subordinate Service.      (ii) Appointment  to the  posts  of      Superintendents in  the  office  of      the Board  of Revenue  (Urban  Land      Tax) -  Commissioner of  the  Urban      Land Tax  and in the offices of the      Assistant  Commissioners  of  Urban      Land  Tax,   shall   be   made   by      promotion from among the Assistants      i the Urban Land Tax Department and      from among  the  Assistant  of  the      District  Revenue   Unit  or  other      Branches of the Board of Revenue.      (iii) Appointment  to the  posts of      Assistants in  the  Office  of  the      Board of Revenue (Urban Land Tax )-      Commissioner of  Urban Land Tax and      in  the  office  of  the  Assistant      Commissioner  of  Urban  Land  Tax,      shall be  made  by  promotion  form      among the  junior Assistants in the      Urban Land  Tax Department and from      among the  junior assistants of the      District  Revenue   Unit  or  other      Branches of the Board of Revenue.      (iv) Besides  direct recruitment as      provided in  rule 2, appointment to      the posts  of junior Assistants and      typists in  the office of the Board      of  Revenue   (Urban   Land   Tax)-      Commissioner of  Urban Land Tax and      in  the  office  of  the  Assistant      Commissioners of  Urban  Land  Tax,      shall  be  made  by  transfer  from      among  the  junior  Assistants  and      typists  of  the  District  Revenue      Unit or  prom other Branches of the      Board of Revenue, respectively,"      Under  Rule   11  dealing   with  recruitment   to  the departmental units  it is  stated that  for the  purpose  of direct recruitment  etc, to the service, a departmental unit shall mean  [a] in  the City of Madras, each office; and [b] outside the City of Madras, each department in each District provided that  each office  or group of offices specified in the table  given therein,  shall  be  a  departmental  unit. Under item  (ii) Board  of Revenue shall be one unit for all

3

http://JUDIS.NIC.IN SUPREME COURT OF INDIA Page 3 of 5  

branches excluding  settlement  of  Estates  and  Commercial Taxes; under  item (iii)  it shall  be departmental unit for Settlement of  Estates Branch  and under item (iii) it shall be for  Commercial Taxes Branch.  It would thus be seen that the Board  of Revenue shall have three separate departmental units. The  Government have  further amended  the  Rules  be making special  Rules under G.O.Ms No.3134, Public (Service) Department dated  September 29.  1975 which  came into force w.e.f. March  1,  1970 adding below Rule 3 [hh] in the Rules The said Special Rules read as under :      "ii)   (i) Appointment to the posts      of Superintendent (Selection Grade)      in  the  office  of  the  Board  of      Revenue    (Urban     Land     Tax)      Commissioner of Urban Land Tax, and      in the  offices of  the  Assistants      Commissioner  of  Urban  Land  Tax,      Department  and   from  among   the      Assistants in  the District Revenue      Unit or other branches of the Board      of Revenue.      iii) Appointment to the Posts of      Assistants in the office of the      Board of Revenue (Urban Land Tax      and)- Commissioner of Urban Land      Tax, shall be made by promotion      from among the Junior Assistants,      in the Urban Land Tax Departments      and from among the Junior      Assistants of the District Revenue      Unit or other branches of the Board      of Revenue.      iv)  Besides   direct  recruitments      provided in  rule 2, appointment to      the posts  of Junior Assistants and      Typists in  office of  the Board of      Revenue   (Urban    Land   Tax)   -      Commissioner of  Urban Land Tax and      in  the  office  of  the  Assistant      Commissioners or  Urban  Land  Tax,      shall  be  made  by  transfer  from      among  the  Junior  Assistants  and      Typists of  the  District  Unit  or      from other branches of the Board of      revenue, respectively".      2.  In   annexures  I,   under  the      heading   "Section  A  -  Selection      Categories’, Under  the sub-heading      ‘Revenue Departments’ after item 4,      the following  item shall be added,      namely :-      5. Office  of the  Board of Revenue      (Urban Land  Tax) - Commissioner of      Urban Land  Tax and  the offices of      the Assistant Commissioner or Urban      Land Tax.      i) Superintendent      ii) Assistants.      3.  In   Annexures  II,  under  the      heading   ‘Revenue Department after      item 4, the following item shall be      added,      "5. Office  of the Board of Revenue      (Urban Land  Tex)- commissioner  of      Urban Land  Tax and  the offices of

4

http://JUDIS.NIC.IN SUPREME COURT OF INDIA Page 4 of 5  

    the Assistant Commissioner of Urban      Land Tax.      All  members   of  the   service  :      Commissioner of  Urban Land Tax and      the ex-office,  Secretary, Board of      Revenue (Urban  Land Tax)  Board of      Revenue (ULT)      4. In Annexure. III      (i)    After    o    category    "1      Superintendent in  the  Directorate      of Tamil  Development in Column (1)      and the entries relating thereto in      column (2)  and (3)  the  following      category  and   entries  shall   be      inserted, namely :-      1.Superintendents  By   1.Revenue      in the office of  Tran  Test      the Board of      sfer      Revenue (ULT)     or      Commissioner or   pro    2.Survey      Urban land Tax    motion Training      and office of            for a      the Asstt.Commor         period not      of Urban Land            less than      Tax                      four weeks                           3.(contd...3)       POSTS                     TESTS      ii) Assistants in the    Revenue      office of the Board      Tests Port      of Revenue(urban land    I,II and      Tax Commissioner of      III.      Urban Land Tax and      the Assistant COmmi-      ssioners of Urban Land      Tax 6. SERVICE TO COURT FOR PROMOTION: The  junior   Assistants   of   District Revenue establishment  Working as Junior Assistant or  working into  higher  post holding  more  responsibilities  in  the Urban  Land   Tax  Department  shall  be entitled to  count their services in the Urban  Land   Tax  Department   for  the Purpose of  promotion as  Assistants  in the District  Revenue  Unit  from  which they were  drawn  too  the  extent  they would have  otherwise  acted  as  Junior Assistants in  the said District Revenue Unit. EXPLANATION -  For the  purpose of these rules, District  Revenue Unit" means, in respect of office Located in Madras City the Revenue  unit of Madras District and in respect  of office  located in  other places the  Revenue Unit of the District in which  the  office  is  located,  but shall not include persons whose services were not  regularised in  the respective posts."      The controversy   having  arisen is:  whether  for  the purpose of promotions from the category of Assistants to the category of  Superintendents, the  units in  respect of  the City of  Madras, office of the Assistant Commissioner [Urban Land Tax  and of  the Commissioner [Urban Land Tax] would be common unit?  In view  of the  above quoted Rules the answer

5

http://JUDIS.NIC.IN SUPREME COURT OF INDIA Page 5 of 5  

obviously would  be in  the negative.  It is  clear from the record that by G.O. Ms. No. 612. Revenue dated May 2 1989 an abortive attempt was made to infuse all the departments into a common unit for the purpose of promotion but the same came to be  cancelled by  C.D. M.s  No.642 Revenue dated April 18 1990.   Consequently, even the administrative decision taken had  no   statutory  base  but  became  fugitive.  Even  the respondents approached  the Tribunal  claiming promotions on the premise  that there  was common unit all the departments in the City, the Tribunal by the impugned order had directed that the  respondents be  treated as part of the unit of the Board of  Revenue and  resultantly their cases be considered for promotion. Thus these appeals by special leave.      Shri  Bhai   Naik,  learned   senior  counsel  for  the appellants  contended  that  the  approach  adopted  by  the Tribunal in  considering the  Board  of  Revenue  and  other branches in  the  city  as  one  unit  for  the  purpose  of promotion of  Assistants as  Superintendents is violative of Rule 3  [hh] of the Rules.  We find force in the contention. It is  seen that  Rule 3  [hh] has  in unambiguous  language expressed unequivocally  that "  if suitable  candidates are not available  for promotion  in the  office of the Board of Revenue [Land  Revenue )",  then the question of considering the claims  of Assistants  in  other  units  as  amended  in G.O.Ms.No.3134 dated  September 29  1975 would  arise. It is sought to  be contended  by the respondents that for over 20 years the respondents had no opportunity for promotion.  The appellants are juniors in point of time of appointment and , therefore,  they   cannot  well   steal     march  over  the respondents. The  Tribunal has  considered in equity all the units as  one unit for the purpose of promotion and does not call for interference under Article 136 of the Constitution. In similar  cases, on  an earlier  occasion  same  view  was expressed to  which some  of the appellants were parties. We find no  force in  the contention.   We  are called  upon to interpret the  rule. We  cannot avoid correct interpretation and  supplant  equity  to  sway  over  statutory  rule  when Assistants in  Board of  Revenue are available for promotion to consider  the cases  of Assistants in other units. Equity operates where  law is silent it will be for the rule-making authority to  decide the unit for the purpose of recruitment or promotion.  The Government did not agree to integrate all the three  units as  one.   In the  face of  the unambiguous statutory language  employed therein,  it would be difficult to give  acceptance to  the contention  of the  respondents. Even the  amended rule  has specifically  provided that  "in rule 3, after sub-rule (hh), the following sub-Rule shall be added", viz.,  as extracted  above.  In  the  light  of  the language of  rule 2  [hh], the necessary conclusion would be that the  Assistants, if available from the Board or Revenue unit,  would   be  considered   first   for   promotion   as Superintendent. In  their absence,  Assistants available  in the office  of the  Assistant Commission of Urban Land Taxes etc. are to be considered for promotion.      The appeals are accordingly allowed. The petition filed in the Tribunal stands dismissed but, in the circumstances, without costs.