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Union of India and Ors. vs G.R. Meghwal

Civil Appeal · 2022 INSC 1010Decided 23 Sept 2022
Civil Appeal No. 2021 of 2022
M.R. Shah · B.V. Nagarathna

Background

The respondent, an officer of the Indian Telecom Group 'A' service on deputation to BSNL, had received "Very Good" ACR gradings for two consecutive years (2005-06 and 2006-07) from the same reporting and reviewing officers. In the very next year (2007-08), the same officers graded him only "Good," with sharply negative remarks that were the near-opposite of what they had written earlier. This below-benchmark grading caused him to be found unfit for promotion (grant of NFU in SAG) by the Departmental Promotion Committee. His representation against the adverse remarks was rejected without adequate reasons, and he approached the Central Administrative Tribunal, which ruled in his favour; the Rajasthan High Court then dismissed the government's challenge to that ruling. The Union of India appealed to the Supreme Court.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court examined the actual text of the three years' ACRs side by side and agreed with the Tribunal's finding that the 2007-08 remarks were extreme, sweeping, and directly contradicted the favourable assessments of the two preceding years by the very same officers, with no evidence that the officer had been cautioned about declining performance during that year or given a fair, objective consideration of his representation. Since no valid reasons were given for rejecting his representation despite these glaring inconsistencies, the Court held that neither the Tribunal nor the High Court had erred in directing the Department to hold a fresh Screening Committee review excluding the 2007-08 ACR. The appeal was accordingly dismissed.

Lesson Learnt

A sudden, unexplained and starkly contradictory adverse performance rating, especially one that overturns a consistent track record, cannot be accepted at face value for a career-affecting decision like promotion; the employer must show a fair, reasoned basis for such a reversal, not just formal communication of the rating.

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

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