District Shimla vs "5. In View Of Above Discussion
2022 Latest Caselaw 148 HP

    IN THE HIGH COURT OF HIMACHAL PRADESH AT SHIMLA




                                                          .

                   ON THE 7th DAY OF JANUARY, 2022

                                BEFORE





                HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE MOHAMMAD RAFIQ,

                             CHIEF JUSTICE
                                   &





                HON'BLE MS. JUSTICE JYOTSNA REWAL DUA

                    CIVIL WRIT PETITION No.135 of 2022


    Between:-
    VIKAS KUMAR, AGED 38 YEARS,
    S/O LATE SH. KULDEEP SINGH,
    R/O VPO KATIC, TUTU, TEHSIL AND


    DISTRICT SHIMLA, HIMACHAL PRADESH,
    PRESENTLY POSTED AS CONDUCTOR
    IN DHALLI, LOCAL UNIT-2, SHIMLA-12, H.P.




                                                          ......PETITIONER





    (BY MR. DHEERAJ KANWAR, ADVOCATE)

    AND





    HIMACHAL PRADESH ROAD TRANSPORT
    CORPORATION, HRTC, HEAD OFFICE,
    SHIMLA-1, THROUGH ITS
    MANAGING DIRECTOR
                                                       ......RESPONDENT
    (BY MR. SHYAM SINGH CHAUHAN,
     ADVOCATE)




                                         ::: Downloaded on - 31/01/2022 23:35:13 :::CIS
                                   -2-




               This petition coming on for admission this day,




                                                          .

    Hon'ble Mr. Justice Mohammad Rafiq, passed the following:


                                ORDER

Notice. Mr. Shyam Singh Chauhan, learned

Standing Counsel, appears and accepts service of notice on

behalf of the sole respondent.

2. This writ petition has been filed by petitioner-Vikas

Kumar, inter alia, with the prayer that the respondent-

Himachal Road Transport Corporation (in short 'HRTC') may be

directed to treat the petitioner as having been appointed on

the post of Conductor on regular basis with effect from

9th July, 2007, with all consequential benefits and accordingly

modify the order of appointment dated 9th July, 2007,

Annexure P-1, as well as order of regularization dated

06.08.2014, Annexure P-3.

3. The petitioner's father was working with the

respondent-HRTC on the post of Conductor on regular basis.

While so working, he died in harness in the year, 2000. The

petitioner applied for compassionate appointment to the

respondent-HRTC, who vide order dated 9th July, 2007 was

.

appointed as Conductor, though on contract basis, but his

appointment was described as one of the compassionate

appointments. Eventually, the petitioner was regularized after

seven years, vide order dated 16th July, 2014.

4. It is contended that some of similarly situated

employees of the respondent-HRTC, who were appointed on

compassionate ground, on contract basis, approached this

Court raising the grievance that their initial appointment

should have been made on regular basis. The learned Single

Judge of this Court in CWP No.2570 of 2013, titled as Lekh Ram

Versus Himachal Road Transport Corporation, vide judgment

dated 29th October, 2014, allowed the writ petition and

directed that the petitioner in that case would be treated on

regular basis from the date of his initial appointment. Several

other similar writ petitions were also allowed. In all these

matters, Letters Patent Appeals were filed before the Division

Bench of this Court and the leading judgment was rendered in

LPA No.42 of 2015, titled as Himachal Road Transport

Corporation Versus Lekh Ram, on 27th February, 2016,

.

whereby, eight identical appeals were decided in the

following terms:-

"5. In view of above discussion, all the Letters Patent Appeals are disposed of by directing the writ respondents to examine the cases of

the writ petitioners in light of the decision of this Court in Surinder Kumar's case supra and the observations made herein above, and make a

decision within a period of six weeks from

today. Pending CMPs, if any, also stand disposed of."

5. The respondent-HRTC approached the Hon'ble

Supreme Court by filing Civil Appeal Nos.1557-1564 of 2019

(arising out of SLP(C) Nos.16158-16165/2016), titled as

Himachal Road Transport Corporation Versus Lekh Ram etc.

etc., which was disposed of vide judgement dated

8th February, 2019, in the following terms:-

"In this view of the matter, it would be appropriate to order and direct that each of the eight employees to whom these appeals relate would be entitled to the benefit of all

the regular terms and conditions of service

.

with effect from the initial dates of their

appointment on contractual terms, as indicated in the chart extracted above. The

above period of service shall also be reckoned for seniority and for terminal benefits as and when they fall due. Arrears of salary payable

to the respondents on this basis shall be computed and paid over within two months from the date of this order.

The appeals shall stand disposed of in

these terms. However, there shall be no order as to costs."

6, In view of the above, even though the learned

counsel for the respondent-HRTC prays for time to seek

instructions and file reply, but, in the facts of the case, we do

not deem it necessary to require the respondent to file reply

and, therefore, dispose of the writ petition, requiring the

respondent to examine the case of the petitioner in the light

of the ratio of the judgment of the Hon'ble Supreme Court

aforementioned and if it is found that facts of the case of the

petitioner are identical to others, who have been granted the

benefit of regular appointment from their initial appointment

.

on contractual terms, the same benefits be extended to the

petitioner by passing appropriate order, within a period of

three months from the date a copy of this order is produced

by the petitioner before the said authority.

7. Pending miscellaneous application(s), if any, shall

also stand disposed of.

                                                (Mohammad Rafiq)

                                                  Chief Justice



                                               (Jyotsna Rewal Dua)



    January 07, 2022                                  Judge
         (Bhardwaj/PK)