THE STATE OF ANDHRA vs GADDAM VENKATAPPAYYA

The Supreme Court held that the reversion of a probationary Sub-Inspector back to the rank of Head Constable was valid under the Madras Police Subordinate Service Rules, specifically rules 3, 4, and 5. The Court interpreted rule 3 to mean that the maximum percentage of promotions from Head Constable to Sub-Inspector could be less than 30%, and thus, the State's action did not violate this rule. Furthermore, the Court found that the juniority for reversion must be assessed separately for direct recruits and rank-promotees, and upheld the reversion based on administrative convenience as per rule 5(b).