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Sitikanatha Mishra v. Union of India & Ors.

Civil Appeal · Neutral citation not assigned (Civil Appeal Nos. 234-235 of 2015, arising out of SLP (C) Nos. 1645-1646 of 2013)Decided 9 Jan 2015
Civil Appeal Nos. 234-235 of 2015, arising out of SLP (C) Nos. 1645-1646 of 2013
Justice Anil R. Dave · Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel · Justice R. Banumathi

Background

The appellant was appointed Professor at the Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management (IITTM) in January 1997, initially on contract. In 2006 he was separately appointed Director of IITTM on a three-year contract, and his service as Director ended in December 2009. Meanwhile, the government had in October 2006 (ratified by IITTM's Board in December 2006) ordered retrospective regularization of 68 posts, including the Professor's post the appellant held, based on a 2002 staff-assessment report. When the appellant tried to resume as Professor after his Director term ended, IITTM refused, and the High Court of Orissa upheld that refusal, reasoning he was not an "existing incumbent" when the regularization order issued.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court held that the regularization order covered all 68 posts recommended by the 2002 Staff Inspection Unit assessment, including the appellant's Professor post, and that the "existing incumbents" language in the order referred only to a separate category of 35 extra contractual posts, not to the 68 regularized posts. Since the appellant was appointed and assessed for regularization before he moved to the Director post, his later move to a different post could not retroactively deny him the regularization. The Court therefore held he must be treated as regularized as Professor with effect from 27 January 1997. On the separate question of whether he could still claim "lien" (the right to return) to the Professor post after his Director tenure ended, the Court found the lower authority's rejection (on the ground he was never "substantively" appointed) was based on an incorrect premise, and remitted that specific sub-issue to the competent departmental authority to decide afresh in light of the Court's finding on regularization.

Lesson Learnt

A retrospective regularization order covering a defined category of posts applies to everyone who held one of those posts at the relevant time, even if that person has since moved to a different post: a later transfer does not erase an entitlement that had already accrued.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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