Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, June 29 : High Court rapped the Commissioner Secretaries of General Administration Department and Public Works Department and Chief Engineer Public Works Department (PWD) for violating the court orders and warned of action in terms of contempt proceedings in case compliance of court orders is not filed.
Justice Ali Mohammad Magrey reprimanded the both the Commissioner Secretaries and Chief Engineer deciding the case of the petitioner-Ghulam Mohammad Lone either way and kept the court orders on side.
“The action and conduct on the part of the respondents, as aforesaid, has, prima facie, made them liable to be punished for committing contempt of Court. Besides, the respondents have to remain present in person before the Court on each and every date of hearing till the Contempt Petition is taken to its logical conclusion”, Justice Magrey recorded.
However before proceeding against these officials under contempt of court, Justice Magrey granted them one last and final opportunity to submit compliance of the judgment passed by the Writ Court with the condition if they fail to do so then shall appear in person before the Court on the next date of hearing.
The Petitioner-Lone is seeking appointment on compassionate grounds in terms of the mandate of SRO 43 of 1994 as his father has died due to harness in the year 199. His son approached the authorities in the year 2000 for compassionate appointment and instead of taking a formal decision with regard to the application of the Petitioner on compassionate grounds, they referred the matter to various authorities.
Faced with this situation, the petitioner was left with no other option but to approach Court through the medium of Writ Petition bearing seeking a direction in the name of the Respondents to appoint him in terms of SRO 43 of 1994 pursuant to death of his father in harness.
The Writ Court, on consideration of the matter and after hearing the counsel for the petitioner advocate Rizwan Bhat arrived at the conclusion that the delay, which was mainly attributed to the conduct of the authorities, could not have become the reason for denying the claim of the Petitioner-Lone for being appointed on compassionate grounds and directed the Respondents to consider and offer appointment to the Petitioner on compassionate grounds in accordance with the mandate contained in Rules notified vide SRO 43 of 1994.
Instead of implementing the judgment passed by the court in the year 2016 the General Administration Department has returned the case of the Petitioner with the advice to the PW(R&B) Department to examine the case in terms of SRO 120 of 2018 dated 5th of March, 2018 and rejected the claim of the petitioner for appointment on compassionate grounds and kept the judgment of the court unimplemented.
Court while taking serious note of the fact said the authorities have sit in an appeal while issuing the rejection on February, 2021 which the court said, in no circumstances, is within the power and authority of the Respondents.
“The Respondents, by no stretch of imagination, have the authority and power to reverse the judgment passed by this Court or sit in appeal against the same by applying some other SRO to the case of the Petitioner which is not the mandate of the judgment of the Writ Court”, Justice Magrey recorded.
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