HP High Court Quashes Six-Month Service Extension of PWD Engineer-in-Chief Narinder Pal Singh. Setback to the Sukhu government blue-eyed Engineer on extension.. Chauhan likely to be the next Chief.
SHIMLA, Oct 27 — The High Court of Himachal Pradesh on Tuesday quashed a state government notification that granted a six-month service extension to Narinder Pal Singh, Engineer-in-Chief (ENC) of the Himachal Pradesh Public Works Department (HPPWD).
A Division Bench comprising Justice Vivek Singh Thakur and Justice Ranjan Sharma directed Singh to relinquish charge of the office with immediate effect. The Court also ordered the state government to revive and conclude the deferred promotion proceedings for the post on or before November 11, 2026.
The judgment was delivered on a civil writ petition filed by Narinder Paul Singh Chauhan, who currently serves as Chief Engineer (Mandi Zone) in the HPPWD. Chauhan challenged the April 28, 2026 government notification granting the extension, arguing that he was the next senior-most eligible officer in the feeder category and that the extension violated established government policy and procedures.
According to case records, Narinder Pal Singh was scheduled to retire upon attaining the age of superannuation on April 30, 2026. In March 2026, the Department of Personnel initiated the process to fill the anticipated vacancy effective May 1, 2026. Vigilance clearance certificates and service records for four eligible Chief Engineers—Narinder Paul Singh Chauhan, Vikas Sood, Anita Vaidya, and Ajay Kapoor—were compiled for evaluation.
A Screening Committee, chaired by the Chief Secretary and including the Additional Chief Secretary, Principal Secretary (Public Works), and Secretary (Personnel), was scheduled to meet on April 9, 2026, to consider the promotions.
However, the meeting was postponed because the Secretary (Personnel) was on tour. When the file was resubmitted to the Chief Secretary on April 22, 2026, to fix a new date, it was deferred with the notation "Please speak," and no further action was taken on it until mid-May.
Meanwhile, a separate file was initiated following a note from the Additional Principal Private Secretary-cum-Special Secretary to the Chief Minister communicating the Chief Minister's approval of a six-month extension for Singh.
Official file notings obtained under the Right to Information Act and placed on the court record showed that the Department of Personnel pointed out that eligible Chief Engineers were available for promotion and that an extension would deprive feeder-category officers of advancement.
The department also cited a December 19, 2017 High Court order (CWPIL No. 201 of 2017) mandating strict adherence to Chapter 22 of the Handbook on Personnel Matters and Fundamental Rule 56(d), as well as an April 7, 2026 government directive instructing all departments not to submit or entertain any proposals for service extensions or re-employment.
Despite these departmental observations, the Chief Minister approved the six-month extension on April 28, 2026, and the formal notification was issued the same day. Consequently, the original file for regular promotion was closed on May 18, 2026, citing the absence of a vacancy.
During the hearings, Advocate General Anup Rattan, representing the State, argued that the petitioner had a right to be considered for promotion, not a fundamental right to promotion itself, while no vacancy existed. He contended that the rules in Chapter 22 of the Handbook on Personnel Matters are directory rather than mandatory, and that the Chief Minister, as the competent authority, granted the extension in the public interest after all facts were placed before him.
Counsel for respondent Narinder Pal Singh, Dr. Lalit Kumar Sharma, submitted that the ENC post is a sensitive technical position and that Singh's continuation was necessary in the public interest to supervise ongoing priority projects.
Representing the petitioner, Senior Advocate Onkar Jairath argued that the file for extension was moved in reverse order from top to bottom rather than originating from the administrative department. He submitted that under Chapter 22 of the Handbook on Personnel Matters, an extension beyond superannuation can only be granted in exceptional circumstances if it is in the public interest and meets one of two conditions: either other officers are not ripe enough to take over the job, or the retiring officer is of outstanding merit.
In its analysis, the Division Bench noted that neither the Public Works Department, the Secretary (Personnel), nor the Chief Secretary had proposed that Singh's extension was required in the public interest or that eligible officers were unavailable. The Court observed that the mandatory proforma and integrity certificate required under Clause 22.6 of the Handbook on Personnel Matters were never filled out or submitted to the competent authority.
The Bench further noted that the state government did not produce any documents or records to demonstrate the public interest or exceptional circumstances warranting the extension.
The Court also pointed out that the state did not take the plea in its reply that ongoing projects required Singh's continuation, nor did any respondent dispute the petitioner's eligibility or competence.
Quashing the April 28 notification as "illegal, arbitrary, and void ab initio," the Court directed the state to convene the Screening Committee and complete the selection process by November 11, 2026.
The Bench further ordered that if Chauhan is recommended for promotion by the Screening Committee, he shall be promoted retrospectively from May 1, 2026, with all consequential benefits, including seniority, pay fixation, and monetary arrears, ruling that the "no work, no pay" principle would not apply.
