S. ABDUL JABBAR KHAN (CHAIRMAN).-- Mian Ijaz Nabi, retired P.C.S., has filed this appeal under section 4 of the Punjab Service Tribunal Act of 1974 as amended in 1975, against orders of respondent No.1, communicated, vide his Office Memo. No. 3197-81/2549/E(F)I, dated 16th September, 1981 by which the claim of the appellant has been rejected.
2. By virtue of this appeal the appellant has prayed that his appeal be accepted and the order of respondent No.1 be set aside. He has further prayed that his seniority list be corrected and he may be considered senior in grade of Tehsildar w.e.f. 16-6-1959. He has also urged that respondent No.1 be directed to confirm the appellant and his pro forma promotion of Tehsildar of Selection Grade be ordered.
3. Brief facts of the case are that the Board of Revenue Punjab drew up a seniority list of Tehsildars corrected upto 31-12-1968. It was a tentative seniority list on which the name of the appellant was stood at serial No. 172 according to which his date of appointment in the cadre of Tehsildar had been shown as 11-10-1965. Thereafter, another tentative list of all Tehsildars was published by the Board of Revenue, vide Notification No. 693-17/612/E(F)
1. Dated 4-2-1970 which was circulated among Tehsildars by the Commissioners of Divisions for inviting the objections on the said list within a period of 1i months.
4. After observing necessary formalities final seniority list of Tehsildars corrected upto 12-6-1971 was published and circulated amongst the Tehsildars, vide letter, dated 2-7-1971. The appellant was retired from service on 12-1-1975 and settled in his native village Gujrat following the commencement of the L.P.R. The appellant moved the representation for correction of the seniority list but the same was ultimately rejected. Hence this appeal.
5. We have heard the appellant in person at length who has submitted that the appellant was confirmed Sadar District Kanungo since 4-1-1957, vide D. C. /Collector, Gujrat's order conveyed, vide his No. 64/SQ, dated 11-1-1962. The appellant kept on serving as Additional Naib-Tehsildar in the Rehabilitation Settlement Department (Financial Commissioner's Office) and was appointed and posted as Officiating Tehsildar in the office of West Pakistan Land Commission w.e.f. 7th May,1959.
Later on the Board of Revenue, West Pakistan, vide its Notification No. 11884-59/5670-Adm. , dated 26th November, 1959, appointed the appellant as officiating Tehsildar Reader to the Member Board of Revenue from 16-6-1959. Later on the appellant was selected as 'B' Class Tehsildar candidate and had cleared the departmental examination in that service. It has been urged that the appellant continued to serve in the Grade of Tehsildar since 7-5-1959 and was entitled to be considered and appointed as such from the said date. According to the appellant he should have been allowed selection grade in B Class Tehsildar, a cadre in which 12$ representation was to be given to this class of service but the same was denied. The appellant has vehemently argued that the right of the appellant was ignored and denied by respondent No.I and he was junior even to the Naib-Tehsildars promoted alongwith him in the P.C.S. Cadre although he was actually senior most of all promotees.
6. On the other hand the learned D.A. Assisted by the representative of the department has raised preliminary objection with regard to the maintainability of this appeal and has submitted that the appeal, was also hopelessly time-barred. The learned D.A. Has also urged that even on merits the appellant has got no case and the appeal be dismissed.
7. We have given our anxious thought to the arguments raised before us and find that the tentative seniority list of Tehsildars was published, vide Notification No. 693-70/612-E (F) I, dated 4-2-1970 for inviting objections within a period of l); months. The appellant's name was at serial No. 172 of the said list. Copies of the said tentative seniority list were circulated to all Commissioners of the Divisions for circulation amongst all the Tehsildars, vide office Notification No.693-70/614-E(F)I, dated 4-2-1970. The appellant did not file any objection against fixation of seniority at serial No. 172 within the prescribed time. The objections raised by other Tehsildars of Rawalpindi Division were received from the Commissioner Rawalpindi Division, vide his Memo. No. A.861/A.I.E/5247, dated 18- 5-1970, which was disposed of accordingly. Final notification was issued, vide Letter No.4399-71/ 1534-E(F)I, dated 2-7-1971. He thus submitted his representation, dated 22-7-1972 long after the finalization of the seniority list which was considered and filed being without merits. In this way we hold that IA the appeal of the appellant is hopelessly time-barred as the list had become final on 15th March, 1972 duly communicated to the appellant.
8. With regard to the merits of the case the appellant was selected as Tehsildar on 18-11-1964. After undergoing the prescribed training he was declared qualified to hold the post of Tehsildar on 15- 10-1.965. According to Rule 8 of the West Pakistan Tehsildar and Naib-Tehsildari Service Rules, 1962, a person selected to the service becomes a memberof the service after joining the service on completion of training and not earlier. Since the appellant was appointed by the Board of Revenue on 15-10-1965 he was correctly assigned seniority at serial No. 172 of the seniority list.
9. With regard to the claim of the appellant for grant of selection grade. It may be mentioned that the available selection grade vacancy fell vacant on 3-5-1966 whereas the appellant got promotion to the Extra Assistant Commissioner's Cadre on 23-4-1966. Since his date of promotion as Extra Assistant Commissioner precedes the selection grade vacancy, he was not considered eligible for the grant of selection grade. According to the principle settled in this regard the Selection Grade is granted in accordance with the seniority-cum-fitness basis and no quota was further reserved for any category of Tehsildars. Moreover his service as officiating Tehsildar in the Land Commission or Reader to M.B.R. Was not a regular one. He was selected as 'B' Class Tehsildar candidate on 18-11-1964 and declared qualified to hold the post of a Tehsildar on 15-10-1965. In this manner pior to this date he has no claim towards seniority.
10. With regard to the claim of pro forma promotion according to the law so settled in this behalf the same cannot be conferred by this Tribunal for lack of jurisdiction. It is for the Government to consider whether a person is fit for promotion or not.
11. The result is we hold that the appeal is hopelessly time-barred as well as being without any merits. However, there will be no order as to costs.