SARDAR MUHAMMAD ASHRAF KHAN (CHAIRMAN).--This is a service appeal against the Government Order No. Admn/3132-46/74 dated 24th September, 1974 whereby respondent No. 2 was transferred and posted as Principal, Intermediate College, Akalgarh in District Mirpur.
2. The facts forming the background of this appeal are that Miss Tahira Talat appellant and Mrs. Farkhanda Chaudhari respondent No. 2 were holding the posts of Assistant Professors in the Education Department and were working as such in the Government Degree College for Women in Muzaffarabad when the latter was transferred and posted as Principal, Government Girls Intermediate College, Akalgarh vide the aforementioned order of the Government respondent No. 1.
Feeling aggrieved by the aforesaid order the appellant filed a review petition against the same and as no decision on it was taken and communicated to her even after the lapse of more than 90 days she has approached this Tribunal for the redress of her grievance.
3. The case of the appellant is that she being senior to the respondent No. 2 as compared to whom she also possessed better merit and ability was entitled to the appointment to the post of Principal, Interme--diate College in preference to the said respondent but by ignoring her right of appointment to such a post the relevant rules governing the terms and conditions of her service have been violated inasmuch as she has been deprived of the charge allowance of Rs. 100 p.m.
Attached to the said post and her chance of promotion to the post of Principal, Degree College also has been marred. On the above assertions she has prayed that the impugned order be set aside and she be declared entitled to appointment as Principal of Girls Intermediate College. She had further asked for the issuance of a direction that while making appointment to the post of Principal of Degree College she be appointed in preference to the respondent No. 2 and other Lecturers junior to her.
4. The appeal has been contested by the respondents who have put in written statements. It is contended by the respondents in their written statement that the appeal is barred by time and that the post of Assistant Professor anti Principal, Intermediate Colleges being of equal status, rank and emoluments no terms and conditions of the service of the appellant have been infringed by the transfer and posting of the respondent No. 2 as Principal, Degree College for Women. It is further contended that no extra allowance is given to the Principal, Intermediate Colleges and that the Assistant Professors and Principal, Degree Colleges are policy eligible, to the promotion to the past of Degree College under the relevant rules governing their appointment to the post of Principal, Degree College.
5. We have heard the learned counsel for the parties and have also gone through the record. First of all it is contended by the learned counsel for the respondents that the appeal is barred by time but we find no merit in this contention. The Azad Jammu & Kashmir Admi--nistrative Tribunal Ordinance whereby Service Tribunal was established was promulgated on 19th April, 1975 while the present appeal was lodged on 30th August, 1975. Thus the appeal has been preferred within six months of the establishment of the Service Tribunal as is envisaged by section 4 of the Service, Tribunal Act. It is next contended that the appeal is incompetent for the reason that by the impugned order no terms and conditions of the appellant have been adversely affected. As is apparent from the impugned order the respondents are still holding the rank of Assistant Professors ire the Education Department and under the impugned order respondent No. 2 has only been transferred from one post to another of equal status, rank and emoluments. There is much force in this argument of the learned counsel for the respondent. No. 2 has been transferred from Degree College for Women where she was working as Assistant Professor and posted as Principal Intermediate College, Akalgrah. The allegation of the appellant that the post of the Principal carries a charge allowance of Rs. 100 p.m. Is not factually correct and as a matter of fact no charge allowance, is admissible to the Principal, Intermediate College as is also borne out from a letter of Deputy Director Education (Colleges) addressed to the appellant and attached gas Annexure 'E' with the written objections filed by the reason--dents. The learned counsel for the appellant has not been able to refer us to any order or rule under which Principal of Intermediate College is entitled to any charge allowance. Similarly there is no truth in the allegation of the appellant that only Principals of Intermediate Colleges arm eligible under the rules for promotion to the post of Principal Degree College. The actual position is that according to "Appendix `A' Education Service Rules 1974" 55% vacancies of the Principals, Degree Colleges are reserved for the departmental promotion from amongst the Principals of Intermediate Colleges and Assistant Professors. Thus the apprehension of the appellant that the impugned order has deprived her of the chance of promotion to the post of Principal Degree College is without any substance, In this view of the matter when the posts of the Principal, intermediate Colleges and Assistant Professors are of equal status, rank and emoluments and are interchangeable and Officers of both the categories are equally eligible for promotion try the post of Principal, Degree College, the question of violation of the terms and conditions of the service of the appellant does not arise at all. Such being the case, no right of appeal is conferred on the appellant within the meaning of section 4 of the Service Tribunal Act which gives a right of appeal to such civil servants whose terms and conditions of service guaranteed or secured under the law or relevant service rules are violated by an order of the competent authority.
For the foregoing reasons we dismiss the appeal as being incompetent but pass no order as to costs.
The parties shall be informed of this order.