Law:

Section:

(a) Civil service- Confirmation-Retrospective confirmation Discretion of competent authority - Confirmation can be made from date of appointment or, in exceptional cases, even from an earlier date - Rule 12.2(3), Punjab Police Rules - Does not lay down anything contrary to such discretion-Punjab Police Rules, r. 12.2(3). It was contended that orders of confirmation of an officer cannot be made with retrospective effect. Held, the right to confirm vests in the Government as employer, and there being no rule or practice of general applica tion, Government has reserved to itself the right to determine how, when, and in what manner and with effect from what date confirmation will be made. Ordinarily a discretion vests in an employer to confirm from a restrospective date, and even from the date of appointment. Indeed such power must exist in the Government for otherwise the application of the rule of seniority can cause hardship and there will be no power in any one to rectify it. Any interpretation, that leaves the Government powerless in a matter within its discretion must naturally be avoided. There is nothing in the-language of rule 12.2(3), Punjab Police Rules, which supports the contention that the date of confirmation must necessarily be different from the date of appointment. There s no obstacle in the way of confirmation being ordered from the date of appointment, which is the usual practice, or even from an earlier date, in very exceptional cases. Muhammad Nasim Ahmad and others v. Miss Azra Feroz Bnkhat and others P L D 1968 S C 38 fol. (b) Civil service - Appointment - Continuous appointment Does not necessarily refer to actual functioning and includes presumptive date of appointment notified by appointing authority West Pakistan (Deputy Superintendents of Police) Service Rules, 1962, r, 9(1)(b).           When rule 9(l)(b) of the West Pakistan (Deputy Superinten dents of Police) Service Rules, 1952 provides a rule of seniority with reference to the date of 'continuous appointment', the question, which must be considered is whether the date need not be confined to the date of actual appointment It…