On December 9, the Supreme Court ruled that an unbroken deputation service is essential to qualify for promotion under specific service rules. A bench of Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia and Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah set aside a High Court decision directing the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to count an employee’s earlier deputation service with a gap for promotion purposes.
The case revolved around Respondent No. 1, a Tamil Nadu government engineer deputed to NHAI from 2008 to 2014. After returning to his parent department, he was directly recruited by NHAI in 2015 as a Manager (Technical). In 2017, NHAI’s recruitment circular specified a four-year continuous service requirement for promotion to Deputy General Manager (Technical). The employee’s deputation period was not considered due to a gap after his repatriation, making him ineligible for promotion.
The Supreme Court upheld NHAI’s position, emphasizing that:
- Continuity of Service: Deputation service interrupted by a gap cannot count as regular service for promotion under NHAI’s rules. The employee’s 2015 direct recruitment marked a fresh appointment, unrelated to his earlier deputation period.
- No Special Rule Exception: Referring to Indu Shekhar Singh v. State of Uttar Pradesh (2006), the Court clarified that past services can only be counted if explicitly allowed by rules or under extraordinary circumstances, neither of which applied here.
- No Discrimination: The Court rejected claims of discrimination, noting that other employees promoted had fulfilled the requirement of unbroken service.
The judgment underscored that service gaps disrupt continuity, directly impacting promotion eligibility as per recruitment rules. Respondent No. 1 was directed to be considered for future promotions from his new service entry date (2015).
Case Title: NHAI v. G. Athipathi & Ors.
Case No.: Civil Appeal No. 14100/2024
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