Bhopal: In a major administrative reform, the Madhya Pradesh government notified the MP Civil Service Promotion Rules, 2025, aiming to end a nine-year impasse in government promotions.
The rules were officially published on Thursday in the Madhya Pradesh Gazette by the General Administration Department.
The development comes just two days after the state Cabinet, under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, gave its formal approval to the new promotion policy during a meeting held on Tuesday.
The Cabinet’s decision marked a decisive step toward resolving the nine-year stalemate in government service promotions.
These rules come in the wake of a prolonged legal and policy vacuum caused by the 2016 High Court judgment in the RB Rai vs State of MP case, which had declared the earlier Promotion Rules, 2002, unconstitutional.
Although the Supreme Court later stayed the High Court’s order, the promotion process remained stalled, affecting lakhs of eligible employees.
According to the Gazette notification, the new rules introduce a fair, constitutionally compliant framework that balances social justice with administrative efficiency. Key features include defined reservations for SC/ST categories based on adjusted vacancy figures, a merit-cum-seniority and seniority-cum-suitability approach to different promotion levels, and annual DPC meetings to ensure timely progression.
Assessment will be done through a five-year confidential report-based point system, with qualifying marks and provisions for disciplinary cases clearly outlined.
To pre-empt potential legal challenges, the state government has taken precautionary legal steps.
Deputy Secretary Ajay Katesaria informed that caveats are being filed by the state government at the High Court’s Principal Bench in Jabalpur and its Indore and Gwalior benches. These caveats are intended to ensure that the Advocate General’s office is notified immediately if any employee, union or individual files a writ petition seeking a stay on the 2025 promotion rules or any of their provisions.
The government stated that a copy of any such petition be promptly shared with the Advocate General’s office to facilitate a timely legal response.