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10. Before the High Court S/Shri R.S. Das, Baldev Kapoor and Smt. K. Goel challenged the validity of the Select List of 1978 on the ground that mandatory provisions of Regulation 6 of the Indian Administrative Service (Appointment by Promotion) Regulations, 1955 (hereinafter referred to as the Regulations) were violated in making the selection as the service records of eligible state officers including that of the petitioners had not been forwarded to the Union Public Service Commission and its approval was given without considering the recommendations made by the Selection Committee, Amendment made in Regulation 5 deleting the provisions which required reasons to be recorded for the supersession of a state officer, was arbitrary and violative of Article 14 of the Constitution. The petitioners further challenged the vires of the Regulations on the ground of their being inconsistent with the Indian Administrative Service (Recruitment) Rules 1954 (hereinafter referred to as the Rules) and inclusion of name of K.S. Raju was assailed on the ground that he had earned adverse remarks and yet he was selected. The petitioners further raised grievance that important material relating to the petitioners' service including certificate and letters of recommendations as contained in their service records were not considered by the selection committee. The High Court by a, well considered judgment rendered in Beldev Singh's case (supra) dismissed all the three writ petitions on the findings that the select list prepared for the year 1978 was in accordance with the regulations and it did not suffer from any legal infirmity. It appears that validity of the Select List of 1978 was challenged by J.S. Chopra and other officers of the state civil service before the High Court under Article 226 of the Constitution on the same ground which had already been rejected by the Division Bench in Baldev Kapoor's case (supra). However having regard to the decision of this Court in Union of India v. Chothia (H.P) and Ors., etc. etc. . Division Bench referred the matter for consideration to a larger bench on the question as to whether the Select List was vitiated for the non-compliance of Regulation 6(iii) inasmuch as reasons for the supersession of senior officers were not forwarded to the Commission. The Full Bench of the High Court held that the decision of this Court in Chothia's case did not affect the position and the Division Bench decision in Baldev Singh's case correctly laid down the law.

14. Under the amended Regulations the Committee is required to categorise officers in four categories on the basis of overall assessment of service record of officers. After categorisation the committee is required to place the name of those officers first on the list who may be categorised as "Outstanding" and thereafter names of those officers shall be included who are found to be "Very Good". And only thereafter the names of those officers shall be included who may be categorised "Good". If in this process any senior officer is superseded the amended Regulation 5(5) does not require the Committee to record reasons for the supersession. The amended Regulations have brought in significant change and now the process of Selection as contemplated by Amended Regulations do not require the Selection Committee to record reasons for the supersession of officers of the State Civil Service.

19. Learned Counsel urged that in the absence of statutory provision, principles of natural justice require the selection committee to record reasons for the supersession of officers to enable them to make representation against their supersession.

20. We find no merit in the submissioin. Principles of natural justice do not require an administrative authority or a selection committee or an examiner to record reasons for the selection or non-selection of a person. In the absence of a statutory provision an administrative authority is under no legal obligation to record reasons in support of its decision. There is no scope for applying principles of natural justice in matters relating to selection of suitable members of State Service for promotion to a higher service. In Mohanlal Capoor's case similar submission was made that principles of natural justice require communication of reasons to the officer proposed to be superseded to enable him to make representation. Both the learned Judges who constituted the Bench repelled the contention. Mathew, J. held that no notice was required to be given to a senior officer if he was proposed to be superseded in favour of a junior on the ground of his greater merit and suitability, the learned judge further observed that it was not expedient to extend the horizon of natural justice. Beg, J. also rejected the submission that minimal requirement of just and fair treatment in such a situation would be to inform the officer to be superseded, the reasons recorded for his proposed supersession to enable him to make representation. On such a ground expansion of scope of natural justice was not justified.

5(2): The list prepared in accordance with Sub-regulation (1) shall then be referred to the Commission for advice, by the Central Govt. alongwith
(a) the records of all officers of State Forest Service included in the list;
(b) the records of all other eligible officers of the State Forest Service who are not adjudged suitable for inclusion in the list, together with the reasons as recorded by the Board for their non-inclusion in the list.

26. Construing the aforesaid regulation this Court held that both the Clauses (a) and (b) of Regulation 5 must be complied with before the recommendations are sent to the Commission. Clause (b) of the Regulation 5 laid down that where eligible officers of the State Forest Service were not found suitable, reasons must be given by the Board for their non-inclusion in the select list. The Court held that Regulation 5(b) which provided for recording reasons was mandatory and it must be complied with. But in view of the amendments made in Regulations under consideration providing for selection on the basis of categorisation of members of the State Civil Service into different categories on the assessment of their service records, principles laid down in Chothia's case are not applicable. After the amendment of Regulation 5 the Committee was under no legal obligation to record reasons for supersession of a senior officer and for that reason it did not record any reasons, therefore, the question of forwarding any reasons by the State Government to the Commission did not arise. Regulation 6(iii) which required the State Government to forward to the Commission along with reasons as recorded by the Committee for the proposed supersession of any member of the State Civil Service was consistent with the unamended Regulation 5(5) which required the Committee to record reasons for supersession of a member of the State Civil Service. By Notification No. 11039/3/78-AIS(1) dated June 2, 1979 Clause (iii) of Regulation 6 was deleted as a result of which the State Govt. ceased to the under any obligation to forward to the Commission reasons recorded by the Committee for supersession of officers. Having regard to the legislative history and the purpose and the object which as sought to be achieved by the amendments there could be no mandatory legal obligation on the Committee to record reasons. Regulation 6(iii) merely required the State Govt. to forward reasons if recorded for supersession of the officers to the Commission, but if no reasons were recorded the State Govt. was under no legal obligation to forward the same to the Commission and its non-compliance did not vitiate the select list. Since the entire system of selection has been changed on account of amendment in the regulations, the principles laid down in Chothia's case do not apply to the instant cases. The Madhya Pradesh High Court in P.C. Pradhan v. Union of India and Ors. [1981] 1 SLR 1 and the Punjab and Haryana High Court in J.S. Chopra's [1980] 2 ILR Punj. 477 case have taken similar views.