Court No. - 38
Case :- WRIT - A No. - 15116 of 2020 Petitioner :- Suraj Prakash Asthana Respondent :- State Of U.P. And 3 Others Counsel for Petitioner :- Pankaj Kumar Ojha,Seemant Singh Counsel for Respondent :- C.S.C.
Hon'ble Saumitra Dayal Singh,J.
1. The present petition is directed against the order dated 15.10.2018 passed by the Under Secretary, Government of U.P., Lucknow, whereby the petitioner's application for grant of compassionate appointment has been rejected.
2. Relevant to the claim made by the petitioner, it may be noted that his date of birth as disclosed is 7.5.1991. On 23.10.1995, the petitioner's mother Jayantika Asthana died in harness. No application was filed at the relevant time by any member of her family seeking compassionate appointment. The petitioner filed his application on 6.6.2012 i.e. almost 17 years after the occurrence of death of his mother.
3. The petitioner claims entitlement to compassionate appointment on that application as he attained the age of majority in the year 2011.
4. Presently, that application has been rejected on the ground of delay of 11 years, 5 months and 28 days. The impugned order also indicates that the said authority has found that even if the relaxation of five years is given, the application would remain delayed for 11 years, 5 months and 28 days.
5. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the petitioner is facing grave hardship in life and that his application for compassionate appointment should have been considered on its own merits. The petitioner was incapacitated from filing such application before attaining the age of majority.
6. On the other hand, learned Standing Counsel has vehemently opposed the writ petition. He submits that there is inordinate delay in filing the application for grant of compassionate appointment and even the date of rejection order dated 15.10.2018 indicates a delay of more than 2 years in filing the instant writ petition.
7. Having heard learned counsel for the parties and having perused the record, the grant of compassionate appointment is by way of exception to the general rule of recruitment through open examination wherein all desiring individuals may have a fair chance to compete. Any person claiming compassionate appointment has therefore to act with due diligence and to claim that appointment at the relevant time. Though the petitioner cannot be blamed for a long period of delay as he had not attained the age of majority, yet, upon lapse of almost 17 years time from the date of death of his mother, the immediate hardships and difficulties that may have arisen on account of untimely death of his mother cannot be assumed to continue to exist as the period of immediate hardship was long over by then. No such circumstance has been shown as may merit any interference to overlook such a long delay.
8. In view of the above, interference in the present case is declined and the writ petition is accordingly dismissed.
Order Date :- 8.1.2021 Prakhar