Telangana High Court
The Life Insurance Company Of ... vs S Jaya on 1 November, 2021
Bench: Satish Chandra Sharma, A.Rajasheker Reddy
THE HON'BLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE SATISH CHANDRA SHARMA
AND
THE HON'BLE SRI JUSTICE A. RAJASHEKER REDDY
WRIT APPEAL No.51 of 2020
JUDGMENT: (Per the Hon'ble the Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma)
This writ appeal is arising out of order dated 30.10.2019
passed in W.P.No.27961 of 2018 by the learned Single Judge
directing the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) to
consider the case of respondent No.1/employee for grant of
compassionate appointment.
The undisputed facts of the case reveal that the
husband of respondent No.1 was a temporary employee
serving LIC. He was appointed in 1994 as sub-staff. His
services were continued from time to time. It is also relevant
to mention that a writ petition i.e., W.P.No.12580 of 1995 was
preferred before this Court claiming regularization along with
other employees and this Court vide WPMP.No.15331 of 1995
has granted an interim order not to discontinue the
petitioners therein on 23.06.1995. The said writ petition was
later on dismissed for default on 14.11.2006. The undisputed
facts of the case also reveal that the husband of respondent
No.1 met with an accident on 12.02.2006 and as per the
averments made in the writ petition, a representation was
preferred on 17.05.2006 to the LIC for grant of compassionate
appointment. Another representation was also preferred on
18.05.2017 and as the representations were not considered
the writ petition was preferred. The learned Single Judge has
allowed the writ petition directing the appellants before this
Court to consider the representation dated 17.05.2006 and
18.05.2017 in accordance with the scheme for grant of
compassionate appointment by treating the deceased
husband as a regular employee of LIC.
Learned counsel appearing for the appellants has
argued before this Court that the employee in question was a
temporary employee and he was not an employee within the
meaning of regulations governing the field i.e., Life Insurance
Corporation of India (Staff) Regulations, 1960 and the scheme
for grant of compassionate appointment cannot be made
applicable to temporary employees/insurance agents/work-
charged employees.
This court has carefully gone through the order passed
by the learned Single Judge. The aim and object for grant of
compassionate appointment is to help a family in immediate
need of financial assistance. In the present case, the accident
has taken place on 12.02.2006 and the writ petition was
preferred only in the year 2018 stating that the
representations be decided. The learned Single Judge has
directed the appellants-LIC to decide the representations by
treating the employee on par with the regular employees.
In the considered opinion of this Court, the writ petition
was certainly hit by delay and laches. In the case of death
took place in 2006, no such mandamus could have been
issued directing consideration on merits.
Resultantly, the repeated representations do not bring
the matter within limitation and the petition was certainly
suffering from delay and laches. Therefore, the order passed
by the learned Single dated 30.10.2019 in W.P.No.27961 of
2018 is set aside.
The writ appeal is accordingly allowed.
Miscellaneous petitions, if any, pending in this writ
appeal shall stand closed. There shall be no order as to costs.
__________________________________
SATISH CHANDRA SHARMA, CJ
______________________________
A. RAJASHEKER REDDY, J
01.11.2021
ES
