Why I Still Mention My Former Designation Adv. G. Jayaprakash (Former Superintendent of Central Excise)

A friend recently asked me why I continue to write "Former Superintendent of Central Excise" below my name.

I joined Central Excise as an Inspector in 1974 and retired in 2012, after thirty-nine years of service. Many of my batchmates retired as Deputy Commissioners. I retired as Superintendent. An inter-Commissionerate transfer affected my seniority and, consequently, my promotional prospects.

That is part of my service history. There may be some disappointment in remembering it, but there is no embarrassment in stating the post I actually held. My colleagues' advancement deserves appreciation; my years of service have their own value.

Central Excise was, for me, also a study in law. Its provisions, procedures, notices and adjudication taught me how law operates in everyday administration. That experience later became a foundation for my practice as an advocate.

The designation below my name tells the reader where I learnt much of what I know. It also reminds me how much there is still to learn.

A transfer may have altered my place in the seniority list. It could not erase the years I had worked or the experience I had gained. Those remain with me whenever I read a judgment, prepare an argument, or write an article.

So I continue to sign "Former Superintendent of Central Excise." It is a truthful description of a meaningful part of my life-and a quiet reminder that a career is measured not only by the last designation held, but by the work done, the lessons learnt, and the integrity retained.