Himachal Pradesh High Court Orders Retrospective Promotion of Retired Forest Officers; Criticizes State for Prolonged Injustice
Landmark Judgment for Forest Department Veterans In a major development impacting service jurisprudence, the Himachal Pradesh High Court has directed the state government to promote two retired Range Forest Officers—Pawan Sharma and Prem Chand—to the post of Assistant Conservator of Forests (ACF) with retrospective effect from 2003 . The court also slammed the state authorities for arbitrarily denying rightful benefits and delaying justice through prolonged litigation. The judgment was passed by Justice Sandeep Sharma on July 7, 2025 , in two connected writ petitions: CWP No. 6145 and CWP No. 6140 of 2024 . Petitioners Met Promotion Criteria Under 2002 Rules Both petitioners fulfilled all the eligibility conditions as per the Himachal Pradesh Forest Service Recruitment and Promotion Rules, 2002 , which required seven years of service as a Range Forest Officer for promotion to ACF. Pawan Sharma joined as a Forest Guard in 1978 and was retrospectively appointed as a...