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Union of India & Ors. vs Manju Arora & Anr.

Civil Appeal · 2022 INSC 1Decided 3 Jan 2022
Civil Appeal Nos. 7150-7151 of 2009
R. Subhash Reddy · Hrishikesh Roy

Background

Manju Arora and Suman Lata Bhatia, Senior Translators (Hindi) in central government service, were offered regular promotion to the higher post of Translation Officer but refused it for personal reasons. They were nonetheless initially granted financial upgradation under the government's Assured Career Progression (ACP) Scheme, a "safety net" meant for employees who stagnate due to lack of promotional opportunities. When it was later discovered that the upgradation had been wrongly given to employees who had voluntarily refused promotion, the benefit was withdrawn. Two other employees, Kanta Suri and Veena Arora, were in a similar position but had been offered only a conditional/officiating promotion (subject to reversion), not a regular one.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court held that the ACP Scheme's own terms (Clause 5.1 of the 1999 government order) make clear that financial upgradation is available only where an employee has not received a regular promotion at the prescribed service milestones, and this includes situations where regular promotion was offered but refused. Applying the "approbate and reprobate" doctrine (a person cannot accept one benefit while rejecting its natural consequence: here, cannot claim to be "stagnating" while voluntarily declining the promotion that would have ended the stagnation), the Court ruled that Manju Arora and Suman Lata Bhatia were not entitled to the ACP benefit and their appeals (7027-7028/2009) were allowed in the government's favour. However, for Kanta Suri and Veena Arora, who had only been offered a conditional/officiating promotion rather than a genuine regular one, refusal did not amount to the same kind of voluntary choice, so their entitlement to the ACP benefit was upheld and their appeals (7150-7151/2009) were dismissed.

Lesson Learnt

An employee who voluntarily turns down a genuine offer of regular promotion cannot later claim benefits (like career-progression pay upgradation) meant only for those who are stuck without promotional opportunities, but this rule does not apply if the "promotion" offered was merely conditional or officiating rather than a real, regular one.

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

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