G. PUNNIYAMOORTHY AND OTHERS Vs. SECRETARY TO THE GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF HUMAN RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Since all these Writ Petitions raised identical issues and grounds, they are taken up together for common disposal.

(2.) The writ petitioners were originally appointed as Upper Division Clerks/Lower Division Clerks respectively on 21.4.2006. They were all appointed after following the recruitment procedure by calling for applications by issuing open advertisement. Before their appointment, they were subjected to rigorous selection process, namely, written test, interview etc. and duly selected by the Selection Committee after assessing the relative merit among all the candidates. Originally, the Central Institute of Indian Languages was located in Mysore and subsequently, it was shifted to Chennai and consequently, all the petitioners were relocated and reposted at Taramani, Chennai. Subsequently, the Writ Petitioners were upgraded to the post of office Superintendent on temporary basis by order dated 12.3.2010. Though the upgradation was on temporary basis, however, the same was continued and extended from time to time on the same terms and conditions. While so, an advertisement was issued by the second respondent, calling for applications for appointment to the various posts including the posts held by the present petitioners. Aggrieved by the same, many similarly placed employees have approached this Court in various writ petitions, questioning the said advertisement issued by the second respondent, calling for fresh applications from the candidates from open market without regularizing them despite the fact that they have been employed for many years having been selected by the Selection Committee through regular selection process.

(3.) Similar writ petition, viz., in W.P.Nos. 29545 to 29556 and 33324 of 2012 came up for consideration before this Court and by a common order, dated 13.10.2017, this Court allowed all the writ petitions and directed the regularization of writ petitioners therein, within a period of four weeks from the date of a receipt of that order.