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At the beginning of the hearing on the petition, the counsel appearing for the state submitted that the person was on leave without sanction while getting promotion to the post of Upper Division Clerk and his seniority was revised from the date of resumption of duty. He said that the period of leave without sanction cannot be treated as valid for any service related benefits. To this, Justice Kant said that he was on leave, not absent on duty and there is a difference between the two.
The bench said, “You are indulging in luxuries just because you are a state. The bench also said that no fraud has been committed on his part.
The Kerala High Court, in its order last year, had held that a person who had joined the education department as a lower division clerk is entitled to retain his post and seniority as per the final seniority list. The Kerala government challenged this order of the High Court in the Supreme Court.