Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, Jan 2: High Court in a major relief to the dozens of employees of Sher-e-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS) engaged against migrant vacancies, directed for their regularization with effect from their appointment and not from the date of passing of Government order.
The petitioner-employees, (45 in number) engaged on contractual basis as Staff Nurses, are aggrieved of the Government Order No. 15-SKIMS of 2013 dated 19.03.2013 whereby their services were regularized and they challenged the same that they ought to have been regularized from the date of their initial appointment and not from the date of passing of the order which is 19.3. 2013.
The grievance of these employees is that their regularization was not given effect from the date of their initial appointment under SRO 255 dated 05.08.2003 against migrant vacancies, as has been done in case of other similarly situated contractual employees.
Justice M A Chowdhary quashed the impugned order and directed the regularization of these employees from the date of their initial appointment under SRO 255 dated 05.08.2003. The court further directed the SKIMS authorities to grant them all consequential benefits, consequent to their regularization from retrospective date.
“It emerges from the facts of the case that, two groups of similarly situated employees were considered and one group of them was accorded benefit of regularization, whereas the other group i.e. petitioners were discriminated, which amounts to contravention of Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution of India”, Justice Chowdhary said.
The SKIMS authorities while opposing the plea of these employees have neither denied specifically that similarly situated contractual Staff Nurses, engaged against migrant vacancies, had not been regularized retrospectively nor could point out anything in the Government Order, governing the subject, to provide as to from what date regularization is to be made.
Court said the SKIMS authorities have discriminated the petitioners vis-à-vis similar treatment and that they have not been given equal opportunities in the matter of public employment, as has been given in the case of other group of similarly situated persons, however, the cases of these employees were deferred for unknown reasons.
“The orders impugned are bad in law, inasmuch as, regularization of services of petitioners must relate to the date of their initial appointment; that due to the delay caused in regularizing the services of the petitioners, the petitioners have suffered a lot as they were entitled to be regularized from the date they were initially appointed, however, their cases have been wilfully delayed”, read the judgment.
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