Uttarakhand High Court

WPSB/390/2016 on 1 July, 2024

Author: Pankaj Purohit

Bench: Manoj Kumar Tiwari, Pankaj Purohit

              Office Notes,
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     Date                                       COURT'S OR JUDGES'S ORDERS
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                                WPSB No.390 of 2016
                                Hon'ble Manoj Kumar Tiwari, J.

Hon'ble Pankaj Purohit, J.

There is no representation for the petitioners.

Mr. Devendra Singh Bora, Standing Counsel for the State of Uttarakhand.

Mr. I.D. Paliwal, Standing Counsel for the State of Uttar Pradesh.

2. Petitioners were given ad-hoc appointment as Lecturer in Higher Education Department of the State Government in the year 1984. Their services were, subsequently, regularized in the year 1996.

3. By means of this writ petition, petitioners have sought the following reliefs:

"(i) to issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of mandamus directing the respondents to refix the seniority of the petitioners from 7-8-1989 when the U.P. Ad-hoc Regularization Rules 1979 (as amended in 1989) or after three months of the judgment & order dated 20-8-1991 passed by Hon'ble Allahabad High Court in writ petition no.3041 of 1989 'Rampal & others V/s State of U.P. & others'.

(ii) to issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of mandamus directing the respondents to decide the representations of the petitioners and refix the seniority of the petitioners."

4. According to petitioners, since the Regularization Rules, under which their services were regularized, were notified on 07.08.1989, therefore, they are entitled to seniority from the date of enforcement of Regularization Rules.

5. Learned State Counsel, however, submits that similar controversy, in respect of seniority of Lecturer serving in Higher Education Department, was decided by Coordinate Bench of this Court in WPSB No.41 of 2004 and the claim of ad-hoc Lecturers, who were subsequently regularized, for seniority in respect of services rendered by them in ad-hoc capacity was turned down by Coordinate Bench of this Court vide judgment dated 20.05.2011. He has drawn attention of this Court to order dated 22.02.2011 passed by Coordinate Bench of this Court, whereby review application filed by writ petitioners was rejected. Learned State Counsel also placed before us the order dated 23.02.2015 passed by Hon'ble Supreme Court, whereby Special Leave to Appeal (C) No.28100 of 2011 (Kamla Joshi Vs. State of Uttaranchal & others) was dismissed.

6. From the pleadings made in the writ petition, however, it appears that the seniority list has not been finalized as yet and only tentative seniority list was circulated.

7. In such view of the matter, the writ petition is disposed of with liberty to petitioners to make objection to the tentative seniority list. It shall be open to petitioners to raise all contentions, including the contention raised in the case of Dr. Ram Pal Singh and others Vs. State of U.P. & others (Writ Petition No.3041 of 1989), decided on 20.08.1991. If petitioners file objection within three weeks from today, the Competent Authority in the Higher Education Department, shall consider the same before finalizing the seniority list.

(Pankaj Purohit, J.) (Manoj Kumar Tiwari, J.) 01.07.2024 Arpan