Court No. - 39
Case :- WRIT - A No. - 18437 of 2019 Petitioner :- Sonu Respondent :- State Of U.P. And 4 Others Counsel for Petitioner :- Rajesh Kumar Pandey Counsel for Respondent :- C.S.C.,Pankaj Srivastava
Hon'ble Ashwani Kumar Mishra,J.
Petitioner has filed the present writ petition for a direction upon the respondents to release salary due to him from September, 2017 on-wards. A further prayer is made to direct the respondents to grant necessary permission for condoning delay in filing application for compassionate appointment.
While entertaining the writ petition learned counsel for Nagar Nigam, Meerut, was granted time to obtain instructions. Instructions have been received, which are taken on record.
Perusal of the record would indicate that petitioner's father was a Safai Karmchari in Nagar Nigam, Meerut, who died on 19.06.2003. Petitioner's mother also died in the year 2004. An application for grant of compassionate appointment was moved after the petitioner attained majority on 18.06.2015. The matter was examined and ultimately compassionate appointment has been granted to petitioner on 21.04.2017. The appointment offered to petitioner is substantive in nature and he has been placed on probation for a period two years. The salary is also paid to petitioner for four months. However, salary since September, 2017 has been withheld on the ground that approval had not been obtained from the State Government for relaxing the limitation of five years, prescribed for entertaining application for grant of compassionate appointment.
Learned counsel for Nagar Nigam states that matter has been referred to the State Government and its approval is awaited. Reliance is also placed upon a judgment of this Court in the case of Dharmendra Singh Vs. State of U.P. and others (2005) 3 UPLBEC 2426.
The question as to whether in a given case limitation of five years in the Rules of 1974, in filing of application for grant of compassionate appointment is liable to be condoned or not needs to be examined at the stage of making of appointment itself and not years after appointment has already been made. It otherwise appears from the records that petitioner's father died in the year 2003 and his mother also passed away in 2004.
Petitioner apparently was a minor at that stage. After attaining majority, he moved an application in 2015 for grant of compassionate appointment. The competent authority has accepted petitioner's claim and offered compassionate appointment to petitioner in April, 2017. It is admitted that petitioner has been working ever since then. He has also been paid salary for a period of four months. Stoppage of salary from the month of September, 2017 on-wards on the ground that approval for entertaining application for grant of compassionate appointing had not been obtained from the State Government, would not be a valid ground now to stop petitioner's salary. Issues relating to condonation of delay in filing of application would be relevant at the stage of examining the issue relating to grant of appointment and not years after appointment has already been granted and the petitioner is working. On facts it is otherwise noticed that the hardship for the petitioner had subsisted as the petitioner has lost both his parents and there was none else in the family to support him. The other member of family is a younger sister. Considering the plight of the family, in case delay is condoned and appointment is offered, no exception can be taken to it. Stoppage of salary, in such circumstances, would be wholly unjustified. Writ petition accordingly succeeds and is allowed. A direction is issued to the respondents to release arrears of salary and continue to pay future salary, as and when it falls due. It would, however, be open for respondents to obtained necessary approval from the State Government.
Order Date :- 28.11.2019 Abhishek Singh