PANJIM: The High Court of Bombay at Goa has directed the State government to treat retired Electricity Department Superintending Engineer (SE) Lekshmanan S on regular basis from June 2012 and to give him pensionary benefits in accordance with law. He was getting paid as retired executive engineer.
By a writ petition, Lekshmanan had prayed that the respondents be directed to treat him as Ad-hoc Chief Engineer (Electrical) with effect from June 2014 and accordingly, to fix his last drawn pay scale and pensionry benefits.
Earlier, in November 2015, the High Court had allowed the petitioner, who had retired during the pendency of the petition, be treated as promoted in 2007 as Executive Engineer for the purpose of computing his last pay and getting his pensionary benefits in accordance with law. However, the petitioner stated that though he was promoted on regular basis as Executive Engineer with effect from 2007 itself, he was further entitled to be promoted to the post of Superintending Engineer and thereafter, to the post of Chief Engineer.
The Petitioner was promoted on adhoc basis as Superintending Engineer in June 2012 and thereafter, was officiating as Chief Engineer vide order dated March 28, 2013 initially for a period of six months and thereafter, extended from time to time, he ought to have been promoted to the post of Chief Electrical Engineer atleast on adhoc basis. By doing so, he was deprived of his legitimate rights and finally, it affected his pensionary benefits.
The State government in its affidavit contended that the petitioner was not promoted on regular basis as Chief Electrical Engineer, but was asked only to officiate on the said post in addition to his own duties as Superintending Engineer. Such an arrangement was made so that the then Chief Engineer who was on extension of service could be relieved from his duties. It further stated that since the petitioner was holding the post of Superintending Engineer on adhoc basis and was made to officiate as Chief Electrical Engineer in addition to his own duties, he was not entitled to be promoted to the post of Chief Electrical Engineer or even on adhoc post.
The Court observed that the petitioner was entitled to be treated as promoted to the post of Superintending Engineer on regular basis from June 2012, only for the purpose of fixing his last pay for computing pension benefits. But he was not entitled to be considered for the post of Chief Electrical Engineer and that too on adhoc basis. No employee is entitled to be considered for the promotional post on adhoc basis and that such right is only on a regular vacant post. Beyond the date of superannuation, the extensions granted by the government from time-to-time cannot be counted for the purpose of pensionary benefits or otherwise, the Court said.
