Eligibility creates only a right to consideration, not promotion without completing the prescribed selection process.

The applicant, a retired Senior Section Engineer in the Signal Department of West Central Railway, was initially appointed as Signal Inspector in Kota Division on 9 November 1981 and thereafter transferred to Jaipur Division while retaining his lien at Kota. Although his name appeared at Serial No. 5 in the Kota Division’s seniority list of Senior Section Engineers, it was inadvertently omitted from the integrated seniority list of the Signal and Telecommunication Department issued on 26 May 2014. Consequently, he was not included among the eligible candidates for selection to the post of ASTE, Group ‘B’, under the 70% LSG quota.

The applicant submitted a representation dated 27 November 2015 seeking correction of the seniority list. The respondents subsequently included his name in the seniority list on 23 December 2015 and called him to appear in a supplementary written examination scheduled for 27 December 2015. The applicant, who was due to retire on 31 December 2015, did not appear in the examination, stating that he was on medical leave. He thereafter claimed promotion to ASTE on the ground that the initial omission of his name had deprived him of the opportunity to participate in the selection process. The respondents contended that he had been given a subsequent opportunity to participate, but failed to avail it, and that the vacancy kept vacant for him was later filled by the next eligible candidate.

1. Whether an eligible employee who was initially omitted from the seniority or eligibility list, but was subsequently given an opportunity to appear in a supplementary written examination, could claim promotion without undergoing the prescribed selection process.

2. Whether the applicant was entitled to promotion to the post of ASTE merely because he was senior to some candidates included in the final panel, despite not appearing in the prescribed written examination.

Where promotion is to a selection post and the applicable rules prescribe a written examination or other selection process, an employee has no automatic or vested right to promotion merely by satisfying the eligibility conditions. The employee has only a right to be considered in accordance with the applicable rules and selection criteria. Eligible candidates must be assessed comparatively on the basis of the prescribed criteria, and the selection process cannot be bypassed to grant promotion to a person who has not undergone it.

The Tribunal relied on Union of India v. Mohan Lal Capoor, (1973) 2 SCC 836, for the principle that where selection is contemplated, eligible candidates must be considered comparatively in accordance with the applicable rules.

The respondents admitted that the applicant’s name had been inadvertently omitted from the integrated seniority list, resulting in his initial exclusion from the ASTE selection process. However, the omission was subsequently rectified when his name was included in the seniority list and he was afforded an opportunity to participate in a supplementary written examination.

Since passing the written examination and consideration by the DPC were mandatory components of the promotion process, the applicant could not claim promotion solely on the basis of seniority or eligibility. His failure to appear in the supplementary examination meant that he had not undergone the prescribed selection process. The Tribunal therefore held that he had not ultimately been denied an opportunity for consideration and that his non-selection resulted from his failure to avail the opportunity provided, rather than from any continuing act of the respondents.

The Original Application was dismissed, with no order as to costs.