Promotees are entitled to the minimum entry pay of an upgraded scale upon the merger of cadres.

The applicant, a retired Assistant Accounts Officer (AAO) from the Department of Posts, successfully passed the Junior Accounts Officer (JAO) examination in 1993 and was promoted to JAO on an ad hoc basis on 29.10.2007, and on a regular basis on 31.12.2008.

Following the 6th Central Pay Commission (CPC), the Department merged the posts of JAO and AAO into a common Pay Band (PB-2) with a Grade Pay of Rs. 4800/- via a notification dated 25.06.2009.

The applicant retired on 31.07.2014.

Relying on the precedent set by the CAT Ernakulam Bench in K.T. Joseph v. Union of India (confirmed by the Kerala High Court and the Supreme Court), the applicant sought refixation of his pay in the pre-revised scale of Rs. 7500-12000 from the date of his promotion.

The respondents rejected the representation via an impugned order dated 27.05.2025, asserting that the K.T. Joseph judgment was in personam and that "entry pay" provisions were inapplicable as the AAO cadre in the Postal Department has no element of direct recruitment.

1. Whether the applicant is entitled to pay fixation in the upgraded pre-revised scale of Rs. 7500-12000/- with effect from the date of his promotion to the merged JAO/AAO cadre.

2. Whether the absence of a direct recruitment element in a specific department’s cadre justifies denying promotees the benefit of pay parity and entry pay scales extended to similar cadres in other departments.

The Tribunal applied the CCS (Revised Pay) Rules, 2008, specifically Rules 7 and 13, regarding pay fixation in revised structures.

It relied heavily on the precedent in K.T. Joseph v. Union of India (OA No. 146/2016), which established that JAOs, upon merger with AAOs, are entitled to pay fixation in the Rs. 7500-12000 scale from their date of promotion.

The court further invoked the principle from Kamlakar and Ors. v. Union of India (1999) 3 SC 307, which held that once direct recruits and promotees are integrated into one cadre, any distinction for the purpose of pay scales is impermissible.

It also referenced the Department of Expenditure OM dated 28.09.2018 regarding entry pay for Central Government employees.

The Tribunal observed that the issue was no longer res integra given the settled legal position in K.T. Joseph, which had been affirmed by the Hon'ble Apex Court.

The Tribunal rejected the respondents' contention that the prior judgment was in personam, noting that the respondents’ defense created an unlawful distinction between direct recruits and promotees.

The Tribunal found the Department of Posts' clarification dated 29.09.2022, which argued that the lack of direct recruitment in the Postal AAO cadre precluded the application of entry pay benefits, to be discriminatory and violative of Article 14 of the Constitution, reasoning that JAOs in the Postal Department cannot be treated differently from those in other departments simply due to the recruitment structure of their specific wing.

The Tribunal concluded that since the post was merged into a scale corresponding to Rs. 7500-12000, the applicant’s pay must be fixed at the minimum of that scale (Rs. 7500) for the purpose of applying fitment tables under the 2008 Rules.

It held that the applicant is entitled to have his pay fixed in the revised pay structure under the CCS (Revised Pay) Rules, 2008, by reckoning his basic pay in the pre-revised scale of Rs. 7500-12000/- effective from 31.12.2008 (the date of regular promotion).

The respondents were directed to issue fresh fixation orders and release all consequential arrears to the applicant within two months of receiving the order.