SC/ST reservation rules continue to govern promotions arising from cadre restructuring.

The applicant, a Senior Publicity Inspector under the Chief Public Relations Officer, Eastern Railway, claimed promotion to the post of Chief Publicity Inspector pursuant to Railway Board’s restructuring order, RBE No. 102/2013 dated 8 October 2013, with effect from 1 November 2013 and with consequential benefits.

He asserted that, being the senior-most employee in the feeder grade, he was entitled to the restructured post and that the administration had ignored the Publicity Inspector cadre while issuing an office order dated 18 November 2015.

After earlier representations and an earlier Original Application, O.A. No. 350/1884/2015, the Tribunal directed the respondents to consider his representation and pass a speaking order.

The Chief Personnel Officer thereafter issued a speaking order dated 21 March 2016, communicated on 22 March 2016, refusing the claim on the ground that the restructured posts were subject to applicable SC/ST reservation requirements and that one post had to remain unfilled as a backlog vacancy.

Whether the applicant was entitled to promotion to the post of Chief Publicity Inspector under the cadre-restructuring scheme introduced by RBE No. 102/2013, with effect from 1 November 2013?

Whether the speaking order dated 21 March 2016, which denied promotion by applying SC/ST reservation and backlog-vacancy rules, was liable to be quashed?

Whether reservation provisions continued to apply to promotions or upgradations arising from cadre restructuring?

The Tribunal applied Section 19 of the Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985, under which an aggrieved employee may approach the Tribunal for redressal of a service-related grievance.

It relied on Railway Board’s RBE No. 102/2013 dated 8 October 2013, which restructured the relevant cadre and expressly provided in paragraph 9 that existing instructions regarding reservation for SC/ST employees would continue to apply wherever applicable.

The Tribunal also accepted the respondents’ reliance on Railway Board reservation instructions circulated through CPO’s serials dated 18 September 1997, 25 September 1997 and 14 August 2002, and RBE No. 3/2004 dated 6 January 2004, under which reserved vacancies that could not be filled were to remain unfilled and be carried forward as backlog vacancies.

Thus, cadre restructuring did not displace applicable reservation requirements.

The Tribunal found that the restructuring increased the sanctioned strength of the post of Chief Publicity Inspector from four to five posts, but that the additional/restructured posts remained subject to the reservation roster.

Since one post was identified for an SC candidate and was required to remain unfilled as a backlog vacancy under the applicable Railway Board instructions, the applicant could not claim an automatic promotion merely because he was senior-most in the feeder grade.

The Tribunal further held that paragraph 9 of RBE No. 102/2013 expressly preserved the operation of SC/ST reservation in the restructuring exercise, defeating the applicant’s contention that reservation did not apply to restructuring-related promotions.

It therefore found no legal or factual basis to interfere with the speaking order.

It held that the applicant was not entitled to promotion to Chief Publicity Inspector with effect from 1 November 2013 because the restructured posts were governed by the applicable SC/ST reservation roster and backlog-vacancy rules.

The challenge to the speaking order dated 21 March 2016 was rejected, the Original Application was dismissed, and no order as to costs was made.