Civil Appeal No 811 of 1988
399 From the Judgment and order dated 9121986 of the Punjab and Haryana High Court in CWP No 2213 of 1986 and CMP No 1519 of 1986
PP Rao KK Patel PS Pradhan and Rajiv Dutta for the Appellant
Dr YS Chitale SC Mahanta section Ramachandran Mahabir Singh and CV Subba Rao for the Respondents
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by SINGH J
Special Leave granted
This appeal is directed against the judgment and order of the High Court of Punjab and Haryana dated 9121986 dismissing the appellant s writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution challenging the order dated 30
121986 dispensing with the appellant s services as Addl
District and Sessions Judge in terms of Rule 103 of the Punjab Superior Judicial Service Rules 1963
Initially the appellant was an advocate practising law in the High Court of Punjab and Haryana
He was selected for appointment to the Haryana Superior Judicial Service by the High Court
On the recommendation of the High Court the State Government by its order dated 1441983 appointed the appellant as Addl
District and Sessions Judge on probation for a period of two years in accordance with Rule 101 of the Punjab Superior Judicial Service Rules 1963 as adopted by the State of Haryana hereinafter referred to as the Rules
The High Court by its order dated 2741983 posted the appellant to Hissar as Addl
District and Sessions Judge where he joined his duties on 25
While he was posted at Hissar certain incidents took place as a result of which the Bar Association of Hissar passed a resolution against the appellant and as a result of which he was transferred from Hissar to Narnaul as Addl
District  Sessions Judge where he assumed charge of his office on 551984
While the appellant was posted at Narnaul inquiry into certain complaints against him was held by a Judge of the High Court
After the inquiry the High Court at its meeting held on 2131985 resolved that the appellant s work and conduct was not satisfactory during his probationary period and as such his services deserved to be dispensed with forthwith
The High Court forwarded its recommendation for terminating the appellant s services to the State Government by its letter dated 2831985
Before the State 400 Government could issue any orders the appellant filed a writ petition under Article 32 of the Constitution before this Court challenging the High Court s decision
On 1441985 this court permitted the appellant to withdraw the petition with liberty to file the same before the High Court
The appellant thereafter filed a writ petition before the High Court challenging the resolution of the High Court as well as certain other consequential orders to which reference shall be made at a later stage
A Division Bench of the High Court by its elaborate order dated 9121986 dismissed the writ petition on the findings that the appellant s work and conduct was not satisfactory and as he was on probation his services were rightly terminated without giving any opportunity to the appellant
Thereafter the State Government pursuant to the recommendation of the High Court issued orders on 30121986 terminating the appellant s services in accordance with Rule 103
Aggrieved the appellant has challenged the order of the High Court under appeal as well as the order of the State Government terminating his services
Before the High Court the appellant laid main stress on the question that the order of termination which had been passed without holding an enquiry giving reasonable opportunity to him to defend himself was violative of Article 3112 of the Constitution as the same was based on a number of complaints and allegations as well as the report of a Judge of the High Court who had made inquiries into the complaints against the appellant
The High Court considered the question in detail and recorded its finding that since the appellant was a probationer his services could be discharged without giving any opportunity to him in accordance with the Rules
The High Court further held that the inquiry which was held by a judge of the High Court was not for the purpose of taking any disciplinary proceedings or imposing any punishment on the appellant instead the inquiry was held to find out the appellant s suitability to the service
Shri PP Rao learned counsel for the appellant challenged the findings of the High Court and urged that since the High Court resolved to terminate the appellant s services on the basis of the inquiry report submitted by a learned Judge of the High Court the constitutional protection available to the appellant under Article 3112 of the Constitution and the principles of natural justice had been violated
On the other hand Dr YS Chitale appearing for the High Court submitted that the resolution of the High Court did not cause any stigma to the appellant and the inquiry held by the High Court was merely to judge his suitability for the service
The appellant was not entitled to the constitutional protection of Article 3112 of the Constitution nor he was entitled to 401 any opportunity of hearing before taking the decision for terminating the appellant s probationary period
We do not consider it necessary to deal with these rival submissions as in our opinion the High Court had no relevant material in coming to the conclusion that the appellant s work and conduct was not satisfactory during his probationary period
It appears to us as we shall presently show that the material which was taken into account was non existent while the other material was not relevant and further the allegations which were taken into consideration remained unsubstantiated
Having perused the entire material placed before us we are of the opinion that the High Court committed error in holding that the appellant s work and conduct was not satisfactory and that his services were liable to be terminated
We would now consider the facts and circumstances which persuaded the High Court on its administrative side in taking the decision to dispense with the appellant s services
On his selection the appellant was firstly posted at Hissar where he joined his duties on 251983
While at Hissar the appellant decided a criminal case under Sections 363366 IPC State vs Ram Niwas on l091983
The appellant acquitted the accused for the offence under Section 366 IPC but convicted him under Section 363 IPC and released him on one year s probation
The accused preferred appeal against his conviction to the High Court
Justice AS Bains by his order dated 541984 allowed the appeal on the ground that the prosecution had failed to prove its case against the accused beyond reasonable doubt and therefore it was not safe to maintain his conviction
In the course of his judgment Justice Bains made the following observations against the appellant I am constrained to remark that the judgment recorded by the trial court is extremely poor and is not based on the evidence on the record
The trial court seems to have wrongly convicted the appellant
 The appellant made representation against the aforesaid remarks but the High Court refused to grant any relief to the appellant on the ground that the remarks awarded to him had been made in judicial proceedings
The appellant made a representation for placing his representation before the learned Judge who had awarded remarks against him but that too was not accepted
The appellant thereafter approached the High Court in the judicial side by means of an application under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure for expunging the aforesaid remarks but he could not get any relief
Ultimately the appellant approached this court by means of Criminal Misc
Peti 402 tion No 1377 of 1987 for expunging the aforesaid remarks
This Court A by its order dated 7th September 1987 held that from the facts and circumstances of the case it could not be said that the order and judgment of the Addl
District  Sessions Judge was not based on the evidence on record and the remarks made by Justice Bains were unwarranted
This Court directed that the aforesaid remarks should be expunged from the judgment in appeal
These facts show that the remarks made by Justice Bains against the appellant were unjustified unwarranted and they ceased to be in force
On 2691983 while the petitioner was recording the statement of an Assistant Sub inspector of police in a sessions case an advocate of Hissar Sh
Nar Singh Bishnoi came into the appellant s court and made a request to the appellant that Thakur Dass the Assistant Sub inspector of police whose statement was being recorded as a witness in a sessions case should be directed to appear in a complaint case against him the Assistant Sub inspector of police pending in the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate Hissar
The appellant told the Advocate Sh
Nar Singh Bishnoi that the Chief Judicial Magistrate should direct Thakur Dass the witness to appear in his court and Shri Bishnoi might himself bring summons and serve the same on Thakur Dass
Bishnoi went to the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate for bringing summons meanwhile the statement of Thakur Dass was recorded and on being discharged from the witness box he became free
The appellant waited for more than half an hour but Shri Bishnoi did not turn up with the summons
Thereupon he discharged Thakur Dass
It was not strictly his duty as a Judge to detain the witness after his evidence was recorded for the purpose of serving summons in a complaint case on him
Shortly thereafter Sh
Bishnoi advocate came to the appellant s court and finding that the witness had already left the court he expressed his anger towards the appellant who was still presiding over his court and threatened him saying that he would see that no judicial officer would dare to act in such a manner
Nar Singh Bishnoi advocate thereupon addressed a letter to the President of Bar Association requesting that a meeting of the Bar Association should be held which read as follows To The President Distt
Bar Association Hissar Subject To consider the behaviour of Sh
IC Jain Additional Sessions Judge
403 Sir It is submitted that today ie On 2691983 I had presented an application in the court of Sh
IC Jain Additional Sessions Judge Hissar in the presence and on behalf of my client Sh
Punam Chand for effecting the service of summons on accused Thakur Dass SI
At that time Thakur Dass SI was appearing as witness in the witness box in the court of Sh
IC Jain and IC Jain refused to pass any order on my application and I was asked to bring the summons
When after obtaining the Dasti summons from the court of Sh
LN Mittal CJM Hissar in whose court complaint was pending I went to the court of Sh
IC Jain by that time Thakur Dass had already fled away and he was seen going on Motor Cycle by my client
Behaviour meted out to me by Shri IC Jain is in fact wrong and mishehaviour with the lawyers community at large
I pray to all the members of Bar Association Hissar that matter may be considered by calling for urgent meeting
Sd Nar Singh Bishnoi Advocate Hissar On the aforesaid letter a meeting of the Bar was convened on 2791983 and the following resolution was passed Resolved that the attitude and the behaviour of Shri IC Jain Additional District  Sessions Judge Hissar towards the members of the Bar is most deplorable verges sic and condemnable for being rude un cooperative and insulting The Bar Association forwarded a copy of the resolution to the High Court and also to the District and Sessions Judge Hissar
The appellant on getting information about the resolution addressed a letter to the Registrar of the High Court on 8101983 giving his version about the incident and he further sought advice of the High Court as to whether in the circumstances the witness Thakur Dass should have been detained on the request of the counsel for a party to enable him to bring summons for effecting service on him and further whether it was the duty of the appellant as an Addl
District  Sessions Judge to get the service effected without their being any requisition from the 404 court of the Chief Judicial Magistrate
It appears that the High Court did not give any reply to the appellant and the guidance sought for by the appellant remained unattended
These facts clearly show how the members of the Bar Association passed the resolution condemning a judicial officer on trifling matter without applying their mind to the question
The appellant being an Additional Sessions Judge was not bound by law to detain the witness to enable counsel of a private party to bring Dasti summons for effecting service on the said witness
The members of the Bar practising before the court should be aware of the legal position and they should not have indulged in passing a resolution condemning the appellant without there being any justifiable cause for the same
If the members of the Bar Association pass resolution against the presiding officers working in subordinate courts without there being any justifiable cause it would be difficult for judicial officers to perform their judicial functions and discharge their responsibilities in an objective and unbiased manner
We are distressed to find that the High Court instead of protecting the appellant took this incident into consideration in assessing the appellant s work and conduct
In May 1984 the appellant was transferred to Narnaul and it appears that some incidents took place there also and complaints were made to the High Court against the appellant
On 1491984 Ram Nath Mehlawat an advocate cum journalist publishing a local weekly newspaper named Jan Hirdey and who was also connected with a social organisation Janata Kalyan Samiti  was assaulted by certain persons
On a complaint made by Sh
Mehlawat a criminal case was registered and it was committed to sessions for trial
The appellant convicted the accused persons except one under Sections 325324 read with Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code
The appellant rejected the plea of the complainant Sh
Ram Nath Mehlawat that he was a public servant that the injuries were caused to him while performing public duty
The appellant held that no offence under Sections 332353 IPC was made out
Ram Nath Mehlawat made a complaint to the High Court against the appellant alleging that the appellant had adjourned the case on several dates and he had acquitted the accused of offence punishable under Sections 332353 IPC on extraneous consideration
He further alleged that the appellant had accepted illegal gratification in acquitting the accused and further releasing the convicting accused persons on probation
The allegations contained in the complaint of Sh
Ram Nath Mehlawat were enquired into by Justice Surinder Singh
As regards correctness of the judgment is concerned it is relevant to note that Sh
Ram Nath Mehlawat filed appeal before the High Court 405 against the appellant s order releasing accused persons on probation and also a criminal revision against the order of acquittal on the charges under Sections 332353149 and 148 of Indian Penal Code and also against the order of releasing the convicted accused persons on probation
The appeal was dismissed on merits by Justice Tiwana who observed that he found no infirmity in the conclusion recorded by the trial judge
The learned Judge held that Ram Nath Mehlawat Advocate was not a public servant though he may have been a Project Director of Adult Education Project run by a social organisation
The learned Judge further held that the conclusion of the trial judge appellant was correct and there was no merit in the appeal
In this view both appeal and revision filed by Sh
Ram Nath Mehlawat were dismissed and the order passed by the appellant was upheld
These facts show that Ram Nath Mehlawat failed in his attempt to get the appellant s order set aside by the High Court
Having failed to do so on the judicial side he made several complaints against the appellant making wild allegations against him about the aforesaid cases
It appears he was instrumental in getting complaints made about other matters also
These complaints were referred to the vigilance judge who enquired into those matters and the report of the vigilance judge was placed before the full court of the High Court on 2771985
After considering the appellant s confidential roll the High Court resolved to dispense with the appellant s services
It is asserted on behalf of the High Court that since the appellant s work and conduct were not found satisfactory during the period of probation of two years the court decided to dispense with his services forthwith
Consequently it made recommendation to the State Government for issuing necessary orders
The decision to dispense with the appellant s services was taken at the full court meeting of the High Court held on 21st March 1980
Along with agenda a note was circulated to the Hon ble Judges referring to five complaints out of which four complaints had been inquired into by Justice Surinder Singh and the fifth complaint remained without any inquiry
The report of Justice Surinder Singh was considered by the High Court along with appellant s service record
The High Court formed opinion that the appellant s work and conduct was not satisfactory
Since the report of Justice Surinder Singh vigilance judge formed foundation for taking action against the appellant we consider it necessary to refer to the same in detail
A copy of the report is on file on perusal of the same we find that in all four complaints were referred to Justice Surinder Singh who was Vigilance Judge for inquiry
The first complaint was by RN 406 Mehlawat Project Director Adult Education
He raised a grievance A that on July 25 1984 the appellant convicted the four accused but he went out of the way to institute an inquiry against Ranjit Singh accused and also against the defence witness for forging a document
He further released all the convicted accused persons on probation
Shri Mehlawat was aggrieved that though he was a public servant the accused were not convicted under Section 332 of the Indian Penal Code
He alleged that he had received information that the appellant had received illegal gratification to the tune of Rs25000 from the accused for taking lenient view in the matter
The vigilance judge recorded the statement of the appellant and other relevant persons in his report he stated that it was difficult for him to come to a definite finding although the allegations contained in the complaint filed by Shri Mehlawat could not be said without any basis but he recommended that the complaint required further investigation
We have earlier noted that Mehlawat had filed appeal and revision against the appellant s order but he failed
Justice Tiwana found no merit in the appeal and revision and he upheld the order of the appellant
Justice Tiwana expressly held that Mehlawat was not a public servant even though he was a project Director of the Adult Education Project and the conclusion of the trial court was correct and there was no merit in the appeal and revision
We are distressed to notice that even though the High Court had upheld the appellant s order on the judicial side it took exception to the appellant s conduct in passing the orders against Sh
Mehlawat
Mehlawat had also made allegations that the appellant had accepted illegal gratification in instalments in giving judgment in his case but during the enquiry by the vigilance judge he could not produce any evidence to that effect
It is a matter of common knowledge that many a time when a litigant is unsuccessful he makes allegations against the presiding officer stating that he had received illegal gratification
Mehlawat was an unsuccessful litigant and he was highly prejudiced and biased against the appellant
Any complaint made by him against the appellant could not be taken at its face value specially so when the appellant s order had been upheld by the High Court
The vigilance judge did not record any finding against the appellant
He observed that the complaint required further investigation
The second matter in respect of which the vigilance judge held inquiry was on the basis of an annonymous complaint pertaining to a civil appeal entitled Sher Singh  ors vs Mahender Singh in which it was alleged that the appellant had during the course of arguments tried to persuade the respondent to compromise the matter
It was alleged 407 that after the arguments were concluded the case was adjourned for several dates for judgment
There was no allegation of any corruption or dishonest motive
The vigilance judge came to the conclusion that the adjournment of the case was unnecessary as the case was a very old one
However the vigilance judge further held that the complaint being annoymous it required further probe
The third complaint was made by Mukut Bihari Sanghi an advocate practising at Narnaul
He alleged that the appellant heard civil appeal entitled Mohan Lal vs Honda Ram on 20th September 1984 and fixed the same for orders for 22nd September 1984 but the judgment was pronounced on 10th october 1984
We have perused the copy of the complaint made by Shri Sanghi but there is no allegation that the appellant committed any misconduct or that he acted on any extraneous reasons in granting adjournment
The appellant stated before the vigilance judge that after arguments were completed he had fixed a date for order but as the parties wanted to compromise he postponed the delivery of judgment for few days in order to enable the parties to settle the dispute but since no settlement was communicated to the court he pronounced the judgment on 10th october 1984
The vigilance judge however made an observation that the case was glaring example of the manner of working of the appellant in judicial cases
In the absence of any extraneous circumstances we do not find any impropriety in a judicial officer postponing the pronouncement of the order to enable the parties to settle the dispute
It is interesting to note that Sh
Mukut Bihari Singhi advocate was twice held guilty for contempt of court
He was convicted for contempt of court by the High Court
He wanted to browbeat the appellant
His complaint however did not contain any allegation of corruption
The High Court failed to appreciate that no appeal was preferred against the appellant s judgment in the case of Mohan Lal vs Honda Ram as the parties were satisfied with the judgment
In our opinion the complaint deserved no consideration it should have been rejected out right
The fourth complaint had been made by one Khem Chand his grievance had been that his Rent Control Appeal had been dismissed by the appellant on 24th November 1984 and he had allowed him two months time to vacate the premises
He applied for obtaining a certified copy of the judgment but he could not get the same
Instead he got the same after inordinate delay
The appellant s explanation was that the copying section was not under his control or supervision therefore he could not be blamed for the delay caused in supplying certified copy of the judgment to Khem Chand
The vigilance judge did not express any opinion on this matter
The above analysis of the report of the Vigilance Judge would 408 show that out of four complaints the vigilance judge expressed opinion that matter relating to item No 1 and 2 needed further investigation and enquiry as he was not in a position to record any definite finding on the allegations made in those complaints
As regards the third complaint of Mukut Bihari Sanghi there was nothing wrong in postponing the pronouncement of the order with a view to give time to the parties to compromise the matter
Finally as regards Khem Chand s complaint the vigilance judge did not express am opinion on the matter
The report of the vigilance judge does not show that the appellant s work and conduct were not satisfactory or that he was not fit to act as a Judicial officer
While considering this question it must be kept in mind that complaints in respect of which the learned Judge observed that the same needed further inquiry into the matter could not at all be considered against the appellant
If the inquiry had been held and the appellant had been given opportunity to place his version before the inquiry officer correct facts would have emerged
But in the absence of any further inquiry as suggested by the vigilance judge the High Court was not justified in considering those matters in concluding that the appellant s work and conduct was not satisfactory
As regards the confidential roll of the appellant is concerned it is noteworthy that when the High Court considered the matter on 2 131985 the appellant s annual report was available only for the first year of his service namely 1983 84
The report for that year was satisfactory
Entry for the year 1984 85 was awarded by Justice SP Goyal who was Inspecting Judge on 1541985
He awarded Grade B  plus to the appellant which means that appellant s work was good
But this entry could not be taken into consideration by the High Court as it had already taken the decision on 2131985 to dispense with the appellant s services
We are distressed to find that when the aforesaid entry for 1984 85 came up for consideration before the full court of the High Court it modified the same and down graded the entry from B  plus to C  which means appellant s work was unsatisfactory
During the hearing we asked the learned counsel appearing for the High Court to produce material on the basis of which the High Court modified the entry given by Justice SP Goyal for the year 1984 85 but he was unable to place any material before us to support the decision of the High Court in modifing the entry
The modification of the entry is therefore without any material and is not sustainable in law
It is thus clear that so far as annual entry on the appellant s confidential roll is concerned there was no material against him which could show that the appellant s work and conduct was unsatisfactory
The facts and circumstances discussed earlier clearly show that the appellant s 409 services were terminated merely on the basis of the report made by the vigilance judge which we have discussed in detail earlier
The note appended to the agenda of the meeting referred only to the inquiry report and it did not refer to any other matter
The Vigilance Judge failed to express any positive opinion against the appellant instead he observed that the complaints required further investigation
If the High Court wanted to take action against the appellant on the basis of the complaints which were the subject of enquiry by the vigilance judge it should have initiated disciplinary proceedings against the appellant then the appellant could get opportunity to prove his innocense
We have already discussed in detail that the facts stated in the complaints and the report submitted by the vigilance judge did not show any defect in appellant s work as a judicial officer
While considering complaints of irregularities against a judicial officer on probation the High Court should have kept in mind that the incidents which were subject matter of enquiry related to the very first year of appellant s service
Every judicial officer is likely to commit mistake of some kind or the other in passing orders in the initial stage of his service which a mature judicial offficer would not do
However if the orders are passed without there being any corrupt motive the same should be over looked by the High Court and proper guidance should be provided to him
If after warning and guidance the officer on probation is not able to improve his services should be terminated
Under the Constitution the High Court has control over the subordinate judiciary
While exercising that control it is under a constitutional obligation to guide and protect judicial officers
An honest strict judicial officer is likely to have adversaries in the mofussil courts
If complaints are entertained on trifling matters relating to judicial orders which may have been upheld by the High Court on the judicial side no judicial officer would feel protected and it would be difficult for him to discharge his duties in an honest and independent manner
An independent and honest judiciary is a sine qua non for Rule of law
If judicial officers are under constant threat of complaint and enquiry on trifling matters and if High Court encourages annonymous complaints to hold the field the subordinate judiciary will not be able to administer justice in an independent and honest manner
It is therefore imperative that the High Court should also take steps to protect its honest officers by ignoring ill conceived or motivated complaints made by the unscrupulous lawyers and litigants
Having regard to facts and circumstances of the instant case we have no doubt in our mind that the resolution passed by the Bar Association against the appellant was wholly unjustified and the complaints made by Sh
Mehalawat and 410 others were motivated which did not deserve any credit
Even the vigilance judge after holding enquiry did not record any finding that the appellant was guilty of any corrupt motive or that he had not acted judicially
All that was said against him was that he had acted improperly in granting adjournments
In view of our discussion we allow the appeal set aside the order dated 9121986 and order of the State Government dated 30121986
We direct that appellant shall be reinstated in service with continuity of service and arrears of salary and allowances and other benefits
The appellant is entitled to the costs which we quantify at Rs5000
SL Appeal allowed


Summary:
Rule 158 of the Indian Railway Establishment Code Vol
I empowers the General Managers to make rules with regard to the non gazetted railway servants provided they are not inconsistent with any rules made by the President or the Railway Board
The Railway Board brought out a circular dated 2241963 laying down the rules for determination of seniority of workshop staff employed in the Production Control organisation and declaring all posts therein as ex cadre
Due to the stiff opposition of organised labour the said circular could not be implemented in the Kharagpur workshop
The Superintendent however after discussing the question with the organised labour issued a memorandum on 2171973 stating that all posts in the PCO would be cadre posts
Subsequently by a circular dated 971978 the Railway Board declared that the staff from shop floors posted in the PCO would receive special pay of 10 of their pay but this would not be available to the staff who were permanently absorbed in the PCO or directly recruited in the PCO
Upon this representations were made by the labour to the Railway Board for implementing its circular dated 2241963 so that the staff of the Pco would be eligible for the special pay
In pursuance of the meetings held with the labour the memorandum dated 4 5l01979 was issued which declared that the Railway Board s circular of 1963 would be implemented in the PCO and that all posts would be treated as ex cadre posts
By another circular issued on 426 1391984 the Railway Board allowed the PCO at the Integral Coach Factory Southern Railway to continue on cadre basis
Aggrieved by the said circular the petitioners who at the relet time were all employees of PCO at Kharagpur carried the matter before the Central Administrative Tribunal and contended i that their posts could not be declared as ex cadre because vested rights which had accrued in their favour could not be affected and ii they could not be treated differently from those of the Integral Coach Factory
This was hostile discrimination and amounted to violation of their rights
The Tribunal rejected both the contentions
Dismissing the special leave petition  HELD 1
Administrative re organisation is permissible and as a result of the same rights may be affected but the vested rights could not be taken away
In the instant case inasmuch as the memorandum dated 21st July 1973 inconsistent with the circular issued by the Railway Board in 1963 no right vested in the petitioners and hence no question of affecting vested rights arise
429C D TR Kapur  Ors
vs State of Haryana  Ors
 referred to
21 Article 14 of the Constitution forbids class disposition but permits reasonable classification for the purpose of disposition which classification must satisfy the twin tests of classification being founded on an intelligible differentia which distinguishes persons or things that are grouped together from those that are left out of the group and that differentia must have a rational nexus to the object sought to be achieved by the disposition
430A B DS Nakara  Ors
vs Union of India   referred to
22 The circular of 1984 of the Railway Board was issued pursuant to the negotiations with the staff in the Departmental Council of Ministry of Railways
The existing arrangement in the PCO of Integral Coach Factory was not disturbed because the recognised Unions there did not want it to be so disturbed whereas in the PCO of Kharagpur the recognised Unions had already agreed that the Railway Board s circular dated 2241963 would be implemented and that all posts in that PCO would be treated as ex cadre
429F G 427 23 The Railway Board is fully competent to bring about necessary changes in the staff pattern of the various units under its control for the purpose of steamlining the organisation and improving the efficiency of the administration
There was therefore a good ground for this differentiation which has a rational nexus with the object of streamlining the organisation
This differentiation cannot be condemned as violative of the rule of equality
It does not amount to hostile discrimination
429G H