Madras HC junks TN's roster-based seniority system in govt employment

The court was hearing a batch of petitions moved by state government engineers who had argued for a merit-based seniority system.
Madras HC junks TN's roster-based seniority system in govt employment
Madras HC junks TN's roster-based seniority system in govt employment
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The Madras High Court on Friday held that the roster-based system of determining seniority in state government employment was unconstitutional and ultra-vires (going beyond one's authorised legal powers).

A division bench of Justices MM Sundresh and RMT Teekaa Raman termed it 'nothing but an indirect way of providing reservation beyond the 69 per cent' prevailing in the state. Thus, the court declared Sections 1(2), 40 and 70 of the Tamil Nadu Government Servants (Conditions of Service) Act, 2016 unconstitutional. The judges observed that in addition to having a retrospective effect on recruitment, these sections of the state legislation, which are considered in effect from January 1, 1955, also have a 'retroactive' effect.

The Madras High Court held that seniority should be determined on the basis of merit. The judges said that depending on the roster system would ensure that a reserved category government servant with less merit would be chosen ahead of a backward class category government servant with more merit.

The court was hearing a batch of petitions moved by state government engineers who had argued for a merit-based seniority system. Stating that the sections presented manifest arbitrariness, the judges called it a knee-jerk reaction to circumvent and nullify an earlier ruling which stood as final.

Further, the judges observed that while vertical reservation was with regard to representation on the basis of community, the horizontal reservation was regard to sub-categories such as women, destitute widows, ex-servicemen, persons with disabilities or those who had studied in English medium, etc. The court said that reservation was on need-basis and not automatic, especially when it came to the special reservation, ie horizontal or internal.

Notably, the court said that Tamil Nadu had chosen not to follow the mandate of the Supreme Court in eschewing the creamy layer.

The state government has been given 12 weeks to change the seniority pattern currently in existence.

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