Authorities directed to decide representation for inter-company merger in a time-bound manner according to policy.

The petitioner, an Assistant Engineer at the Hasdeo Thermal Power Station under the Chhattisgarh State Power Generation Company Limited (CSPGCL), sought an inter-company merger to the Chhattisgarh State Power Transmission Company Limited (CSPTCL), Raipur

Pursuant to the Inter-Company merger circular dated 05.03.2019, the petitioner submitted a formal representation to the Chief Engineer (Human Resource) on 29.07.2025

Alleging that the representation remained pending without consideration, the petitioner filed a writ petition seeking a mandamus to direct the respondent authorities to process his merger request according to the prescribed procedure

Whether the respondent authorities are required to consider and decide upon the petitioner’s pending representation for an inter-company merger in accordance with the policy circular dated 05.03.2019

The Court primarily relied on the administrative procedure and eligibility criteria formulated in the Inter-Company merger circular dated 05.03.2019 (Annexure P-7), which governs the movement of personnel between state power utility companies

The Court applied the principle of administrative fairness, requiring authorities to decide on employee representations within a reasonable timeframe when such representations are made under a specific policy

The Court observed that the petitioner had already initiated the request through the proper administrative channel by submitting a representation to Respondent No. 6

Counsel for the respondents expressed no objection to a limited direction for the consideration of the said representation

Taking note of the existing policy framework and the nature of the grievance, the Court determined that the matter warranted an administrative decision rather than judicial interference on merits at this stage

The Court emphasized that once a policy for merger exists, the competent authority is duty-bound to process applications forwarded to them in accordance with the law

It directed Respondent No. 6 to forward the petitioner’s claim to Respondents No. 1 to 4 within three weeks

The Court further ordered the concerned authorities to consider and decide the application in accordance with the law within a period of three months from the date of receipt of the representation