Full Judgment Text & Judicial Ruling

1994 P L C (C

1994 P L C (C.S.) 1330

[Lahore High Court]

Before Irshad Hasan Khan, J

ABDUL MAJID SANDHU and others

Versus

GOVERNMENT OF PUNJAB through Secretary, Finance Department and others

Writ Petition No. 540 of 1994; heard on 26th April, 1994.

Punjab Civil Servants Pay Revision Rules, 1977‑‑‑

‑‑‑‑R. 10(1)‑‑‑Benefit of premature increment‑‑‑Entitlement‑‑‑Civil servants, being Private Secretaries of High Court were upgraded from B.S. 16 to 17 and they had claimed that upgradation of their posts to all intents and purposes amounted to promotion and therefore, they were entitled to benefit of pre mature increment under R. 10(1) of the Rules‑‑‑No comparative suitability and entitlement of civil servants were under consideration when they were upgraded‑‑‑Posts of civil servants were upgraded to bring them at par with Federal Private Secretaries‑‑No element of selection being involved in their upgradation, they were not entitled to benefit of premature increment claimed by them.

Muhammad Ghani for Petitioners.

Mian Abdul Sattar Najam, A.‑G., Punjab with Malik Muhammad Suleman Awan for Respondents Nos. 1 and 2.

Date of hearing: 26th April, 1994.

JUDGMENT

This judgment shall dispose of Writ Petitions Nos. 540/94 and 2100/93 involving identical questions of law and facts.

2. The facts in brief are that pursuant to the judgment of this Court in Writ Petition No. 1520/87 the posts of Private Secretaries of this Court were upgraded from BS 16 to 17 vide Government of Punjab, Finance Department's Notification No. FD/PC‑40‑1/87, dated 7‑12‑1989, followed by Notification No. 2‑Gaz.l/V.Z.2(a), dated 7‑1‑1990, whereby the learned Chief Justice of this Court appointed Private Secretaries of BS‑16 of this Court to the upgraded posts of Private Secretaries (BS‑17) with effect from various dates mentioned against their names therein.

3.Learned counsel for the petitioners argued that the upgradation of posts of incumbents for all intents and purposes amounts to promotion, therefore, they were entitled to the benefit of premature increment under Rule 10(1) of the Punjab Civil Servants Pay Revision Rules, 1977. In support of his contention reliance is placed on Government of Punjab through Secretary Services, Punjab, Lahore and 4 others v. Muhammad Awais Shahid and 4 others (1991 SCMR 696).

4. I am afraid, the ratio laid down in the precedent case does not advance the cause of the petitioners as is apparent from the operative part of the judgment which reads thus:‑‑

"The decision of the Service Tribunal is set aside and it is held under the existing rules consistently practised that wherever there is a change of grade or post for the better, there is an element of selection involved that is promotion and it is not earned automatically, but under an order of the competent authority to be passed after due consideration on the comparative suitability and the entitlement of those incumbents."

5. Here, admittedly no comparative suitability and entitlement of the petitioners were under consideration when they were upgraded. On the contrary, the posts were upgraded to bring them at par with the Federal Private Secretaries. No element of selection was involved in their upgradation. The petitioners are, therefore, not entitled to the benefit of premature increment within the purview of Rule 10(1) of the Punjab Civil Servants Pay Revision Rules, 1977.

In view of the above, both the writ petitions fail and are hereby dismissed without any order as to costs.

H.B.T./A‑636/L Petitions dismissed.

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