SECRETARY TO GOVERNMENT REVENUE DEPARTMENT Vs. POOMALAI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The intra-Court Appeal arises out of the order dated 29.11.2017 in W.P. No. 31332 of 2012 passed by the Learned Judge of this Court. The parties are hereinafter referred to as per their description in the Writ Petition for the sake of convenience.

(2.) The Petitioner, who was sponsored through the District Employment Exchange, was temporarily appointed as Night Watchmen on daily wages in the office of the Tahsildar, Attur Taluk, Salem District and he has been working in that post from 14.12.1984 onwards continuously. The Government of Tamil Nadu in G.O. Ms. No. 22, Personnel and Administrative Reforms (F) Department dated 28.02.2006 directed that the service of daily wage employees working in the Government Departments, who have rendered ten years of service as on 01.01.2006, be regularized by appointing them in the time scale of pay of the post in accordance with the service conditions prescribed for the concerned post subject to their being otherwise qualified for the post. The benefit of regularization in terms of that Governmental Order was granted to the Petitioner by G.O. (Ms.) No. 170, Revenue (Service-8(2)) Department dated 22.05.2012. However, it had been mentioned in that order that his services were regularized with effect from the date of issuance of that order. The Petitioner, who was aggrieved by not granting him the benefit of regularization with effect from 14.12.1994 when he completed ten years of service on daily wage basis, challenged the aforesaid order to that extent in W.P. No. 31332 of 2012 and sought for consequential directions.

(3.) The Learned Judge, who heard the Writ Petition by order dated 29.11.2017, came to the conclusion that the case of the Petitioner was identically placed to that of another employee, viz., V. Madhuraj who had been granted that benefit in the order dated 21.03.2013 in W.A. No. 1117 of 2012 and held as follows:-