Supreme Court stays recent promotion of judicial officers on seniority-cum-merit basis by Gujarat High Court, State

The Supreme Court on Friday stayed the decision of the Gujarat High Court and the subsequent State government notification to promote 68 judicial officers to the post of district judges based on the seniority-cum-merit rule i.e. where seniority is given preference over merit [Ravikumar Maheta and anr vs High Court of Gujarat and ors]..A bench of Justices MR Shah and Justice CT Ravikumar held that it was satisfied that "orders issued by the state govt is violative of the supreme court judgments delivered.""We stay the further implementation and operation of the select list dated March 10, 2023 issued by the High Court of Gujarat and the subsequent Notification dated April 18, 2023 issued by the State government. Meaning thereby, the respective promotees be sent to their original posts which they were holding prior to their promotion vide select list dated March 10, 2023 and notification dated April 18, 2023," the Court said.However, the Court made it clear that the stay will not apply to those in the list who would get promoted based on merit alone since they would anyways make it even if the promotion was based on merits."However, it is clarified that the present stay order shall be confined with respect to those promotees whose names do not figure within the first 68 candidates in the Merit List on the basis of the merits, the copy of which is produced by the High Court along with the counter. Meaning thereby, the promotion of those promotees, whose names otherwise do figure in the first 68 candidates in the Merit List shall be continued as even otherwise and even if the writ petition is allowed, in that case also, they will get the promotion on merits," the judgment said.Among the 68 promoted was Surat Judicial Magistrate Harish Hasmukhbhai Varma who held Congress leader Rahul Gandhi guilty of criminal defamation in March and sentenced him to two years of simple imprisonment.It is unclear at the moment whether Varma would fall within the merit list as well so as to be exempt from the stay by the top court. .The verdict came in a case concerning the promotion and appointment of district judges in Gujarat.The plea filed by aspirants of district judge posts had challenged the Gujarat government's and Gujarat High Court's move to make appointments on the basis of seniority-cum-merit.It was contended that the same should have been on the existing principle of merit-cum-seniority as per which merit is given preference over seniority. It was contended that selection list dated March 10, 2023 and the further promotion order dated April 18, 2023 issued by the Government of Gujarat were absolutely illegal and contrary to Rule 5(1)(i) of the Rules, 2005 as amended in 2011 as well as the Recruitment Notice – District Judge (65%) dated April 12, 2022.It was also highlighted that the Supreme Court in the case of All India Judges’ Association and Ors. Vs. Union of India and Ors. had directed that the recruitment to the higher judicial services, i.e., the cadre of District Judges should be on the basis of principle of 'merit-cum-seniority' and passing a suitability test and not on the basis of 'seniority-cum-merit'.Despite that, candidates with much lower marks than the petitioners have been appointed, it was contended.The bench had sought the response of the High Court and the State government on April 13 this year.However, four days later, the government had gone ahead and notified a promotion list.The Court in its order on April 28 had said the same was 'very unfortunate'.The concerned Secretary as well as the High Court was called upon to explain its stand, and place on record as to which principle the promotions and merit list had to be based on.The State government had, during the hearing of the matter on May 1, submitted that the notification was not in violation of but in compliance with the earlier directives of the Court..Senior Advocate Dushyant Dave, appearing for the respondent-promotee judges had argued that another bench (led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud) is already seized of and hearing the All India Judges Association case dealing with services conditions and appointments of judicial officers.Therefore, since the promotions were made in line with directives earlier issued in that case, the matter should be heard by that bench, he had said.The Court after considering the submissions concluded that the select list dated March 10, 2023 issued by the High Court and the subsequent notification dated April 18, 2023 issued by the State government granting promotion to the cadre of District Judge were illegal and contrary to the relevant rules and regulations and even to the decision of the apex court..Justice Shah noted that since Senior Advocate Dave requested the bench not to dispose of the plea, but to send it to the CJI bench hearing similar case, the Court stayed the notification and opined that the matter should heard by the bench led by CJI. It, therefore, directed that the matter be placed before the CJI on the administrative side for obtaining appropriate orders for listing..[Read Judgment]