Pratap Kishore Panda v. Agni Charan Das
Background
After a 1974-75 state competitive examination produced too few SC/ST candidates, the State filled the remaining reserved posts through a second route: about 400 candidates sponsored by the Employment Exchange were interviewed by a Selection Committee and appointed between 1978 and 1980, then regularised by government resolutions in 1982 and 1983. General-category candidates recruited through the Public Service Commission challenged the resulting seniority list, and the Orissa Administrative Tribunal ruled in their favour. The High Court reversed the Tribunal and upheld the resolutions, so the general-category recruits appealed.
Decision Breakdown
The Supreme Court dismissed the appeals and upheld the High Court. The Court held that the Orissa Reservation of Vacancies Act allowed a fresh recruitment drive for SC/ST posts, so the Selection Committee route was lawful, and the later amendment to the recruitment rules applied only prospectively. It said the Constitution Bench ruling in Umadevi should have been applied by the High Court, but that the appointments here were made through a valid method rather than through a backdoor or arbitrary process, so Umadevi's bar on regularising illegal appointments did not apply. It held that the appellants did have standing to challenge the seniority, but that their challenge failed on the merits, and it left the question of disturbing the merit list closed because it was not pressed.
Lesson Learnt
A government job filled by an alternative route may be protected if the rules in force at the time allowed that route and the selection was fair and transparent. Seniority disputes in public service are usually decided under the rules that applied when the person was appointed.