1989SCMR485 (PLP)

Ejaz Hussain Batalvi, Senior Advocate Supreme Court, Z.K. Dastgir, Advocate Supreme Court, MA. Zaffar, Advocate Supreme Court and MA. Qureshi, Advocate‑on‑Record (absent) for Respondent No.l (in both Petitions). Date of hearing: 11th October, 1988. NASIM HASAN SHAH, J.‑‑This order will dispose of both the above noted petitions for special leave to appeal. The relevant facts are that Dr.Mahmood Ali Malik (respondent No.l in both the petitions) was appointed as an Assistant Professor on 9‑12‑1966, as a direct recruit. He was promoted as Professor of Medicine on 20‑11‑1973. His contestant Dr. Naseer Mahmood Akhtar (petitioner in Civil Petition No.1227 of 1983) was also appointed as an Assistant Professor, as a direct recruit on 17‑4‑1968 but he was promoted as a Professor earlier on 19‑7‑1_971 as Professor of Orthopaedics Surgery. Accordingly, in the joint seniority list of Professors issued on 20‑8‑1981 Dr. Mahmood Ali Malik was shown at Serial No.36 while Dr. Naseer Mahmood Akhtar was shown higher up in the said list, at Serial No.19. Dr. Mahmood Ali Malik represented against the fixation of his seniority below to Dr. Naseer Mahmood Akhtar claiming that he being senior in the lower grade was entitled to the rank senior in the higher grade of Professors, after having been promoted thereto, even though at a later date. But this representation was rejected on 27‑7 1982. He thereupon filed an appeal before the Punjab Service Tribunal challenging the seniority list dated 20‑8‑1981. This appeal was accepted by the learned Tribunal vide judgment and order dated 18‑6‑1983 and the aforesaid seniority list set aside and Dr. Mahmood Ali Malik declared senior to Dr. Naseer Mahmood Akhtar. The last‑mentioned order has been challenged both by Dr. Naseer Mahmood Akhtar (by Civil Petition No.1227 of 1983) and the Government of Punjab (by Civil Petition No.1229 of 1983). The learned counsel on behalf of the petitioners in both the said petitions have submitted that the learned Service Tribunal while accepting the appeal of Dr. Mahmood Ali Malik relied on its own judgment in the case of Dr.(Mrs.) Shamim Raza Bukhari v. Government of the Punjab and another (Appeal No.197/412 of 1979) but that this Court has granted leave to appeal against the aforesaid judgment of the Service Tribunal vide order dated 20‑12‑1981 passed in Civil Petitions Nos.868 and 974 of 1981 (Prof. Dr. Nazir Alam Naru v. Government of the Punjab and another). Leave to appeal is granted in these cases as well. The parties will, however, be at liberty to canvass questions, other than those arising in the aforesaid case, which fall for determination in the circumstances of the present cases. The appeals shall be made ready on the present record with liberty to the parties to add further documents if any and put up for hearing at an early date. MAX/N‑111/S Leave granted.