Employees’ State Insurance Corporation Vs Union of India (Supreme Court of India)
Facts- The ESIC has filed the present appeal against the judgement of Division Bench which rejected the petition filed against the promotion of the contesting respondent to the post of ‘Associate Professor’ under the Dynamic Assured Career Progression Scheme (DACP Scheme).
Fact of the matter is that the respondent had joined service between 7 February 2012 and 26 June 2014. The Central Government, through the Central Health Service Division of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, had issued the DACP Scheme through an Office Memorandum dated 29 October 2008. The DACP Scheme contemplated promotion as Associate Professor upon completion of two years of service in the post of Assistant Professor as an officer under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. After two years of service as Assistant Professor on 2 February 2017, the contesting respondents sought promotion under the DACP Scheme and instituted proceedings before the Central Administrative Tribunal, Bengaluru.
CAT directed the ESIC to consider the contesting respondents for promotion under DACP Scheme.
Conclusion- The Preamble to the ESIC Recruitment Regulations 2015, recites that the prior approval of the Central Government, as necessitated by Section 17(2) of the ESI Act was duly sought. In the event of a conflict between an executive instruction, an office memorandum in this case, and statutory regulations – the latter prevail.
Thus, the DACP Scheme facilitating promotion on the completion of two years of service is not applicable to the contesting respondents, when the regulations have a statutory effect that overrides the Office Memorandum dated 29 October 2008 which implemented the DACP Scheme.
The advertisements issued by the appellant mentioned that the DACP Scheme would be applicable for its recruits. However, it is a settled principle of service jurisprudence that in the event of a conflict between a statement in an advertisement and service regulations, the latter shall prevail.
FULL TEXT OF THE SUPREME COURT JUDGMENT/ORDER
