The Supreme Court on Wednesday underlined that promotion only becomes effective upon assumption of duties and not from the date of the vacancy or recommendation. A bench of Justices P S Narasimha and Sandeep Mehta said it was a well-settled principle that promotion became effective from the date it was granted and not the date of the vacancy or creation of the post. "While the courts have recognised the right to be considered for promotion as not only a statutory right but also a fundamental right, there is no fundamental right to promotion itself," the bench said. The apex court delivered its verdict on an appeal filed by the West Bengal government and others challenging a February 2023 judgement of the Calcutta High Court. The high court upheld an order of the West Bengal Administrative Tribunal which directed that a man, though not entitled to retrospective promotion after his superannuation, should be awarded notional financial benefits for the promotional post of chief scienti