Adjustment of Settlement Assistants as Patwaris
*Says contemnors can’t escape from legal obligation to act
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Mar 5: Taking serious note of non-compliance of the clear direction, High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh has sought personal appearance of Financial Commissioner Revenue (FCR) and Secretary, Revenue Department on next date of hearing. Moreover, it has made it clear that contemnors cannot escape from the legal obligation to act on the judgment passed earlier.
In a Writ Petition SWP No.1462/2017 the High Court vide judgment dated July 31, 2017 issued directions for adjustment of Settlement Assistants as Patwaris on substantive basis and the same was confirmed in another judgment dated September 13, 2017.
The Government implemented this judgment and adjusted some Settlement Assistants as Patwaris. However, when similarly situated Settlement Assistants approached the Government for their adjustment as Patwaris their plea was rejected and this compelled them to knock the doors of the High Court.
In terms of order dated December 21, 2022, High Court came up with a very categoric direction with respect to the compliance of the Writ Court judgment failing which the personal appearance of the Commissioner/Secretary to Government Revenue Department and also of the Financial Commissioner Revenue was to take place along with the record of the case.
After passing of this direction, a compliance report dated February 27, 2023 was filed resting upon the affidavit of present Secretary to Government, Revenue Department. The compliance report was submitted along with Government Order No.22 JK (Rev) of 2022 dated February 27, 2023 in terms whereof the outcome being reported is that the claim of the petitioners has been found to be devoid of any merit and hence rejected.
After hearing Senior Advocate Abhinav Sharma with Advocate Abhirash Sharma for the petitioners and counsels for the respondents, Justice Rahul Bharti observed, “read between the lines, this Government Order No. 22-JK (Rev) of 2022 dated 27.02.2023 is literally meaning to convey back a message to this court that the Writ Court judgment is also devoid of merit admitting of no compliance”.
“It is pertinent to mention here that the Writ Court judgment in the present case proceeded squarely on merits and on the basis of the judgment dated 31.07.2017 passed in a Writ Petition SWP No. 1462/2017 further confirmed in LPAOW No. 150/2017 in terms of judgment dated 13.09.2017 based upon which the writ petitioners in said writ petition SWP No. 1462/2017 came to be adjusted as Patwaris on substantive basis”, Justice Bharti said.
He further said, “it is by reference to the factual and legal position so obtaining in Writ Petition SWP No. 1462/2017 found to be identically placed with the factual and legal situation of the petitioners in the Writ Petitions in SWP Nos. 2688/2015, 1234/2018, 2807/2015 & 1213/2012 that the Writ Court came up with the direction unto the writ respondents to consider the case of all the writ petitioners in these writ petitions and pass a similar order in favour of the petitioners”.
“Now by saying that the case of the petitioners in SWP No. 1462/2017 in terms of their appointment as Patwari was an aberration, the contemnors in the present case cannot escape from the legal obligation to act in compliance with the judgment of the Writ Court in the present case even if that compliance has to be on the side of aberration”, Justice Bharti said, adding “it is for this court to attend to grant of relief in case of the petitioners. Relief granted even if factually or legally untenable so long as is not upset by the superior court through its indulgence on the appellate side jurisdiction, compliance to the relief so given cannot be excused on the part of the respondents who are obliged to act in compliance”.
Taking serious note of non-compliance, Justice Bharti said, “this court is left constrained to act in furtherance of order dated 21.12.2022 and direct personal appearance of Piyush Singla, Commissioner Secretary Revenue Department and Shaleen Kabra, Financial Commissioner Revenue in person before this court on the next date of hearing”.
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