VIGILANCE MANUAL VOLUME III - AP Online

400 DECISION - 153
in that capacity for some time, a notice was issued asking him to
show cause why an adverse entry should not be entered in his
character roll. Two years after this he was reverted from the post of
Platoon Commander to his substantive post of Head Constable.
The respondent filed a suit petition in the High Court challenging the
order and obtained a favourable decision upon which the appeal was
filed before the Supreme Court by the State.
The Supreme Court took the view that when an order of
reversion from an officiating post to a substantive post amounts to
reduction in rank, then the provisions of Art. 311 of Constitution are
attracted. Referring to the guiding principles laid down in the case
of Purushotham Lal Dhingra vs. Union of India, AIR 1958 SC 36, the
Supreme Court pointed out that where an order of reversion is
attended with a stigma or involves evil consequences such as
forfeiture of pay and allowances, loss of seniority in the Government
servant’s substantive rank, stoppage or postponement of future
chances of promotion, then it would virtually amount to reduction in
rank. In this particular case, the order of reversion did not cast any
stigma on the respondent nor did it involve loss of his seniority in his
substantive rank as Head Constable. But at the same time, 200
Sub-Inspectors junior to him were still officiating as Sub-Inspectors
when he was reverted. He alone had been singled out for reversion
which amounts to discrimination. There was no indication that he
had been reverted for administrative reasons, like abolition of post
etc. The appellants tried to explain this by saying that he was reverted
because of the adverse entry in his character roll and hence there
was no discrimination in reverting him. The Supreme Court pointed
out that if it is accepted that he was reverted as a result of the adverse
entry, then it did amount to a punishment and was liable to be quashed
for not complying with the requirements of Art. 311 of Constitution.