Gujarat High Court
District Development Officer Surat vs Viralkumar Jayshukhbhai Patel on 17 January, 2025
Author: Sunita Agarwal
Bench: Sunita Agarwal
NEUTRAL CITATION
C/CA/6094/2024 ORDER DATED: 17/01/2025
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
R/CIVIL APPLICATION (FOR CONDONATION OF DELAY) NO. 6094 of
2024
In F/MISC. CIVIL APPLICATION NO. 34049 of 2024
With
F/MISC. CIVIL APPLICATION NO. 34049 of 2024
In
R/LETTERS PATENT APPEAL NO. 438 of 2023
With
CIVIL APPLICATION (FOR STAY) NO. 1 of 2024 In F/MISC. CIVIL
APPLICATION NO. 34049 of 2024
In
R/LETTERS PATENT APPEAL NO. 438 of 2023
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DISTRICT DEVELOPMENT OFFICER SURAT
Versus
VIRALKUMAR JAYSHUKHBHAI PATEL & ORS.
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Appearance:
MR SIDDHARTH R KHESKANI(9483) for the Applicant(s) No. 1
MS HETAL PATEL AGP for the Respondent(s) No. 94,95,96,97
MR PA JADEJA(3726) for the Respondent(s) No.
34,35,36,37,38,39,40,41,42,43,44,45,46,47,48,49,50,51,52,53,54,55,56,57,58
,59,60,61,62,63,64,65,66,67,68,69,70,71,72,73,74,75,76,77,78,79,80,81,82,8
3,84,85,86,87,88,89,90,91,92,93
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CORAM:HONOURABLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE MRS. JUSTICE
SUNITA AGARWAL
and
HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE ANIRUDDHA P. MAYEE
Date : 17/01/2025
ORAL ORDER
(PER : HONOURABLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE MRS. JUSTICE SUNITA AGARWAL)
1. There is a delay of 191 days in filing the Review Application and the only ground raised therein is that the Hon'ble Apex Court in the decision mentioned in the application seeking for condonantion of delay has condoned the delay of even 654 days in filing the Page 1 of 4 Uploaded by CHANDRASHEKHAR MEHESHKUMAR KOSHTI(HC01066) on Wed Jan 29 2025 Downloaded on : Sat Feb 01 01:28:48 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION C/CA/6094/2024 ORDER DATED: 17/01/2025 undefined Special Leave Petition. The another ground seeking condonation of delay is the order dated 17.10.2024 passed by the Division Bench in the Letters Patent Appeal No.1557 of 2024, wherein the Letters Patent Appeal has been disposed of subject to the final order in Review Petition being Misc. Civil Application No.27969 of 2024 in Letters Patent Appeal No.1325 of 2022 with the observation that the parties shall be governed by the final decision passed in the Review Application unless modified/confirmed or set aside by the Higher Forum. Both the grounds taken to seek condonation of delay in filing the Review Application are found to be misconceived.
2. On the merits of the Review Application, it is a wholly misconceived application filed for review of the judgment and order dated 23.04.2024 passed in the Letters Patent Appeal No.438 of 2023. The sole ground to seek a review of the aforesaid judgment is that the original petitioners were appointed on a regular basis after participating in the selection process as per the Recruitment Rules, 2011 and they were given fresh appointments. The submission is that their cases cannot considered for regularization of services from the date of their initial appointment, as after regular selection, it was a fresh appointment and there has been delay on the part of the petitioners in challenging the said action of the respondents.
3. Be that as it may, from the statements made in the Review Application itself, it is evident that the original petitioners/respondents herein were appointed on contract basis between the year 2003-2011 for a period of 11 months in each appointment, thereby creating artificial breaks in the continuous service of the original petitioners working on the post of Multi- purpose Health Worker (Male) Class-III (Panchayat Service). Further Page 2 of 4 Uploaded by CHANDRASHEKHAR MEHESHKUMAR KOSHTI(HC01066) on Wed Jan 29 2025 Downloaded on : Sat Feb 01 01:28:48 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION C/CA/6094/2024 ORDER DATED: 17/01/2025 undefined statement is that vide notification dated 15.06.2011, the Panchayat, Rural Housing and Rural Development Department notified the Multi-purpose Health Workers (Male) Class-III (Panchayat Service) Recruitment Rules, 2011 providing for regular appointment to the post of Multi-purpose Health Worker (Male) in the superior Panchayat service, Class-III by direct recruitment, with a view to bring an end to all contractual appointment for the post of Multi- purpose Health Worker. Pursuant to the said notification, the regular recruitment examination was conducted with the Advertisement No.1/2011-2012 by the Gujarat Panchayat Service Selection Board. In the recruitment process, all the original petitioners/respondents herein were selected and they were given appointment on a fixed pay for a period of five years, on the premise that their appointment would be fresh appointment to the post in question. While working as such, the original petitioners were absorbed in the regular pay scale in the year 2017 in terms of the Government Resolution dated 16.02.2006. It is evident that all the petitioners have been selected on regular basis on the post, on which, they were initially appointed on contact basis. Their earlier appointments on the post of Multi- purpose Health Worker (Male) on contractual basis with artificial breaks are not liable to be ignored in view of the fact that all the original petitioners have been selected on regular basis in continuity of their contractual appointment. The grant of benefit of regularization, ignoring the condition of appointment letter of the petitioners by direct selection that their appointment is a fresh appointment, cannot be said to be suffering from any error of law. For this reasoning, we have refused to interfere in the order passed by the learned Single Judge while dismissing the Letters Patent Appeal No.438 of 2023 by the judgment and order dated 23.04.2024.
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4. In view of the above, the Review Application is dismissed both on the grounds of inordinate unexplained delay as well as on merits. The connected Civil Application for stay does not survive and the same is also disposed of.
(SUNITA AGARWAL, CJ ) (ANIRUDDHA P. MAYEE, J.) cmk Page 4 of 4 Uploaded by CHANDRASHEKHAR MEHESHKUMAR KOSHTI(HC01066) on Wed Jan 29 2025 Downloaded on : Sat Feb 01 01:28:48 IST 2025