' SYED AAL-E-AHMAD (MEMBER-I)---Dr. Sabir Zameer Siddiqui, Director Agriculture (Research), Regional Agricultural Research Institute, Model Town ' A', Bahawalpur, has filed this appeal under section 4 of the Punjab Service Tribunal Act, 1974, against the orders dated 4-3-1999 passed by the Secretary to Government of the Punjab, Agriculture Department, under which the appellant was granted pro forma promotion as Food Technologist (BS-18) with effect from 1-4-1987 instead of 1- 6-1973.
2. The brief facts of to case are that the appellant was working in the Agriculture Department since 26-1-1970 as Chemical Assistant. He was appointed through the Punjab Public Service Commission on 1-11-1974 as Assistant Food Technologists in the Punjab Agricultural Service Class-I Junior. He claims seniority over his colleagues who were already working in Punjab Agriculture Service Class-II and whose posts had been upgraded en bloc to Punjab Agricultural Service Class-I Junior w,e,f, 28- 8-1972, earlier than the date of direct recruitment of the appellant in this line. The appellant contends that consultation with the Punjab Public Service Commission was required under the 1963 Rules and this requirement was not fulfilled at the time of upgradation of the posts and the upgradation was, therefore, illegal.
3. The appellant claims that Mr. Manzoor Ullah who was given promotion from 1-6-1973 in accordance with a judgment of the Punjab Service Tribunal upheld by Supreme Court had been declared as junior to the appellant (1991 SCM R 530 and 1991 SCM R 1127) and, therefore, the appellant should also be given promotion from 1-6-1973.
4. The appellant had earlier filed an Appeal No,729/440 of 1987 in the Punjab Service Tribunal in which M/s. Mian Abdul Maalik, Dr. Muhammad Aslam Mian, Dr. Muhammad Abdul Haq (Respondent No,4 in the present appeal) and Ch. Manzoor Ullah (Respondent No,7 in the present appeal) were arrayed as respondents.
5. It was prayed in the appeal cited above that the appellant be declared senior to respondents at serial Nos.1, 2, 3 and 4. The appeal was dismissed by the learned Tribunal vide its judgment dated 27-11-1989. The appellant filed an appeal in the Hon'ble Supreme Court of Pakistan (C.A. No,673 of 1990) which was accepted by the Hon'ble Supreme Court of Pakistan and it was held that the appellant shall have seniority over respondent No,1 (Mian Abdul Maalik), respondent No,2 (Dr. Muhammad Aslam Mian) and respondent No,4 {Ch. Manzoor Ullah) as claimed by him but not against respondent No,3 (Dr. Muhammad Abdul Haque), Ch. Manzoor Ullah, respondent No,7 in Appeal No,729/440 of 1987 filed a review petition (DCRP No,123 of 1990) before the Hon'ble Supreme Court of Pakistan which was dismissed vide judgment dated 20-3-1991. It would, therefore, be seen that the judgment of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of Pakistan dated 21-11-1990 passed in Civil Appeal No,673 of 1990 is final.
6.. It is contended by .The appellant that the respondent department in spite of complying with the order of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of Pakistan dated 21-11-1990 passed in Appeal. No,673 of 1990 has erroneously issued the impugned orders in pursuance of the judgment of the Hon'ble Supreme Court passed in C.P. No, 387 of 1998 which is extraneous to the issue. It was contended that the question of seniority vis-a-vis the appellant and respondent No,4 has been authoritatively decided by the Hon'ble. Supreme Court vide its judgment dated 21-11-1990.
7. On the other hand, respondent department in their written objections reported that the question of pro forma promotion of the appellant has been decided in the light of the judgment of the Hon'ble Supreme Court given in C.P. No,387 of 1998; as such no exception can be taken to the impugned orders.
8. We have heard the learned counsel for the appellant, the learned counsel for the respondents, the learned District Attorney and examined the merits of the case.
9. It was contended by the learned counsel for the appellant that the question of seniority of the appellant vis-a-vis the respondent No,7 in the present case has been authoritatively decided by the Hon'ble Supreme Court vide judgment dated 21-11-1990 passed in Appeal No,673 of 1990. It was, therefore, contended that there was no justification for the respondent department to deviate from the judgment of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of Pakistan and pass an order quite alien to the dictum laid down by the Hon'ble Supreme Court of Pakistan. It was further contended that reference to the judgment of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of Pakistan dated 4-12-1998 passed in C.P. No, 387 of 1998 relates to the review of promotion made in the department during 1970 to 1980. It was a generalized issue whereas the specific issue relating to the dispute of seniority between the appellant and respondent No,7 had already been settled by the Hon'ble Supreme Court of Pakistan in its judgment dated 21-11-1990.
10. The learned District Attorney was not able to controvert the point urged by the learned counsel for the appellant.
11. We have anxiously considered the arguments of the parties and filed that the question of the seniority of the appellant vis-a-vis respondent No,7 had been authoritatively decided by the Supreme Court vide its judgment dated 21-11-1990 in C.P. No, 673 of 1990. The respondent department was, therefore, under legal obligation to comply, with the orders of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of Pakistan in letter and spirit and grant the relief sought by the appellant in terms of the judgment referred to above.
12. Resultantly, the appeal is allowed and the respondent department is directed to grant the relief to the appellant from the date of promotion to Ch. Manzoor Ullah (respondent No,7) i,e, w .e.f. 1-6-