Ad-Hoc Promotion Beyond Prescribed Quota Confers No Right To Seniority Or Service Benefits: Himachal Pradesh High Court

The Himachal Pradesh High Court dismissed a writ petition, holding that when ad-hoc promotion is clearly beyond the 15% quota and therefore not in accordance with the Recruitment and Promotion Rules no consequential service benefits can be given. Justice Ranjan Sharma remarked that: “Once the adhoc promotion given to the petitioner was beyond or in excess of 15% quota… therefore, the adhoc promotion granted 'not as per the Rules' will neither confer any right nor a legally enforceable claim for benefit of service rendered dehors the Rules for service benefits.” In 1987, the petitioner was initially appointed as a Class-IV employee in the Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board. Later in 1991 she got promoted as a Clerk on an ad-hoc basis and continued until she was regularized in November, 1995. However, her claim for counting the ad-hoc period towards seniority and promotion was rejected by the Board in 2010. In response, the board contended that under the applicable Recruitment and Promotion Regulations, only 15% of the posts in the cadre of Clerks/Meter Readers were for promotion from Class-IV (Non-Technical) staff. It further contended that the quota had already been exceeded well before the petitioner's ad-hoc promotion. The Court reiterated that “Where the initial appointment is only ad hoc and not according to rules and made as a stop-gap arrangement, the officiation in such post cannot be taken into account for considering the seniority.” Further the Court noted that the petitioner's ad-hoc promotion was clearly beyond the 15% quota and therefore not in accordance with the Recruitment and Promotion Rules. Thus, the service rendered during that period could not be counted for any service benefits.Thus, the High court upheld the rejection order. Case Name: Salochna Devi v/s Himachal Pradesh State Electricity BoardCase No.: CWPOA No.3788 of 2019Date of Decision: 17.11.2025For the Petitioner: Mr. Vishal Singh Thakur, Advocate.For the Respondent: Mr. Anil Kumar, AdvocateClick Here To Read/Download Order

Ad-Hoc Promotion Beyond Prescribed Quota Confers No Right To Seniority Or Service Benefits: Himachal Pradesh High Court

Mehak Aggarwal

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