The Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) on 29 May 2025 dismissed the plea of an MTNL officer seeking retrospective seniority benefits after his absorption in the Delhi State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (DSIIDC)
The applicant, who began his career with Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd. (MTNL) as a Junior Engineer and was later promoted as Assistant Engineer, joined DSIIDC in 2011 on deputation as an Executive Engineer. In 2018, DSIIDC issued a circular for absorption of deputationists, clarifying that seniority would be determined in line with DoP&T guidelines. Following his absorption with MTNL’s NOC, the applicant sought seniority benefits from October 1, 2010 to June 2, 2021, relying on Clause 3.5.3 of the DoP&T Office Memorandum and citing Manish Rajan v. Union of India (O.A. No. 545/2019).
The Respondents argued that since the applicant never held the substantive post of Executive Engineer prior to July 10, 2020, he could not claim retrospective seniority. The Tribunal agreed, holding that the DoP&T provision invoked applied only to officers substantively holding the post. It further observed that the precedents cited by the applicant were factually distinguishable and not applicable.
Accordingly, the Tribunal dismissed the Original Application, finding it devoid of merit.
Appearances:
For Applicant: Adv. Gyanendra Singh
For Respondents: Mr. Amit Singh Chauhan and Ms. Firdouse Qutub Wani
Intervenor: Mr. M.K. Bhardwaj
