Jammu & Kashmir High Court
Mohd. Farooq & Ors vs State Of J&K & Ors on 20 March, 2009
HIGH COURT OF JAMMU AND KASHMIR AT JAMMU. SWP No. 1014 OF 2005 Mohd. Farooq & Ors. Petitioners State of J&K & Ors. Respondent !Mrs. Surinder Kour, Advocate ^Mr. Shaista Hakim, Dy. AG Hon'ble Mr. Justice H. Imtiyaz Hussain Date: 20/03/2009 :J U D G M E N T :
Petitioners were appointed as Executive Helper, Line man and Switch Board Attendant in the respondent-department between the period from 1989 to 1994. They are working in the department since then. Their services have been regularised from time to time. Services of petitioners 1 and 2 have been regularised w.e.f. 10.1.2004, petitioners No. 3, 8 & 14 w.e.f. 24.12.2003, petitioners No. 4, 6 & 10 w.e.f. 1.1.2004, Petitioners No. 5 & 7 w.e.f. 13.3.2004, petitioner No. 9 w.e.f. 6.11.2004, petitioner No. 11 w.e.f. 30.11.2004 , petitioner No. 12 w.e.f. 13.3.2001, petitioner No. 13 w.e.f. 15.4.2005 and petitioner No. 15 w.e.f. 17.1.2004, while as petitioners have completed their 7 years of service in July 1996, November, 1998, April 2000, June 1997, July 2000, October 1998, March 2001, October 1998 and June 1996 respectively. Their regularisation has been directed prospectively and no benefit has been given to them for the past service as they were eligible for regulrisation immediately on completion of 7 years of continued 2 period of work as daily rated workers. Through the medium of the present petition they seek a direction to the respondents to consider their cases to give effect to their regularisation w.e.f. the date they completed 7 years of daily rated service.
Respondents have in their reply stated that as per SRO 64 of 1994 all the daily rated workers, who were engaged before 31.3.1994, were to be considered for regularisation on certain criteria i.e 7 years regular service as daily wagers, creation of posts, availibility of vacancies and seniority of the incumbent. It is further stated that completing 7 years ipso-facto does not confer any right on the incumbent to claim regularisation.
Heard. I have considered the matter.
The petitioners are aggrieved that though their services have been regularised in terms of SRO 64 of 1994, the benefit of regularisation has not been accorded to them from the date they completed 7 years of service. The petitioners state that as per rule 4 of SRO 64 of 1994 the 'daily rated worker shall be eligible for regularisation after completing 7 years continued period of working as daily rated worker'. As per rule 5 all daily rated workers are eligible for regularisation and under rule 8 the daily rated workers who may not complete 7 years on 31.3.1994 but may complete by the end of subsequent financial years, their absorption shall be considered in that financial year. Since the petitioners completed their 7 years daily rated service in the years 1996, 1997,1998,1999,2000 and 2001 they are entitled for regularisation from these dates i.e when they completed 7 years of service. The petitioners have further stated that in similarly situated persons respondents have given retrospective effect of regularisation but the petitioners have been denied this benefit without any reasonable cause and reason.
3A vague reply has been submitted by the respondents who have not denied that the petitioners completed their 7 years of service on the dates mentioned by them in the petition. The only plea taken by the respondents is that the regularisation under SRO 64 of 1994 is not ipso facto but depends on various factors one of them being that the post should be available for such regularisation but the respondents have not given the details of the post or the date when these posts become available for the regularisation of the petitioners.
In these circumstances and in view of the fact that there is nothing on record to contradict the averments made in the petition I find the matter needs reconsideration by the respondents.
Accordingly this petition is disposed of with a direction to the respondent No. 4 Chief Engineer, Electric, maintenance and R.E. Wing, Jammu to constitute a committee of two Senior Officers of the department who would examine the cases of all the petitioners and find out from which date the posts became available for them for their regularisation. On completion of the said exercise the Committee shall make appropriate recommendations regarding the retrospective regularisation of the petitioners from the date they became due for it and the posts became available for them. On the recommendations of the Committee the Chief Engineer shall pass appropriate orders. The committee shall complete the exercise within a period of eight weeks from the date of its constitution thereafter the Chief Engineer shall pass appropriate orders within four weeks from the date report is received by him from the Committee.
Disposed of accordingly.
Jammu 20.3.2009 ( H. Imtiyaz Hussain) Judge Mujtaba *CS*