#Administrative Tribunals

CAT ruled that a valid No-Objection Certificate obliges the railway to grant an immediate relieving order, barring discretionary refusal. The decision curtails administrative discretion in spouse-ground inter-railway transfers, requiring employees to be relieved within the NOC’s validity.

Supreme Court affirms that CSIR's Assessment Committee retains discretion to evaluate promotion suitability based on Work Reports and Performance Mapping Scores without rigid mark averaging. The ruling clarifies that administrative tribunals cannot impose mechanical scoring requirements on expert committees, reinforcing flexibility in service law assessments.

CAT Jammu rules that permanent absorption in a post mandating Public Service Commission selection cannot bypass statutory recruitment rules, even for employees with long temporary service. The judgment reinforces that lateral entry or absorption must comply with prescribed selection processes, impacting government hiring policies and service law compliance.

MP High Court rules that undue delay in challenging administrative selections-even if flawed-renders judicial relief infructuous, reinforcing the doctrine of laches in service matters. The ruling protects settled service rights of officers appointed decades ago, setting a precedent for timeliness in administrative challenges.

The Central Administrative Tribunal ruled that contempt jurisdiction is limited to examining willful disobedience, not the merits of compliance orders. Contractual employees' substantial compliance with tribunal directions discharges contempt liability, reinforcing procedural fairness over substantive scrutiny.

The Supreme Court ruled that recruitment rules lacking a statutory provision for reserve lists bar claims to unfilled posts, even if a selected candidate fails to join. The selection list operates strictly within notified vacancies, and no implied right to substitution exists without explicit legal backing. This decision reinforces the finality of select lists in public service recruitments, impacting ex-servicemen and other reserved category candidates.

CAT Kolkata rules that denial of No Objection Certificate (NOC) to government servants for external job interviews without statutory grounds violates their right to career progression. The tribunal mandates compliance with DoPT guidelines, holding arbitrary refusals as unconstitutional.

CAT Jammu holds that uninterrupted service on a sanctioned post creates enforceable rights under Articles 14 and 16, directing regularization from date of officiation.