KANTI SRIVASTAVA Vs. STATE BANK OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Petitioner, widow of late Ashok Kumar Srivastava, who was serving as Assistant Manager in the State Bank of India and was at the relevant time, posted at Pratapgarh, has preferred this petition for the relief of quashing the impugned order contained in the communication dated 12.7.2001 and also for the relief of mandamus to the respondents to employ the petitioner in Class III service of the State Bank of India.

(2.) The brief facts, which bear on the controversy involved in this petition are that the husband of the petitioner, namely, Ashok Kumar Srivastava, who held the post of Assistant Manager in the Bank was, at the relevant time, posted at Pratapgarh met with a road accident and succumbed to his injuries on 26.12.1999. The deceased was survived by his widow and three daughters. It is stated that the petitioner applied for compassionate appointment in Class 3 cadre commensurate to her educational qualification. The application moved for compassionate appointment did not find favour with the competent authority who rejected the same by means of the order contained in communication dated 12.7.2001. It is this order, which is the causative factor for institution of the present petition. Detailed order passed for declining the prayer for compassionate appointment has been annexed to the counter-affidavit as Annexure-C.A. 2. From a perusal of the order dated 14.6.2001, it would transpire that after furnishing details about the fiscal condition of the family, it has been spelt out that 'indigent circumstances do not exist in the family'.

(3.) Learned counsel appearing for the petitioner, in vindication of his stand that the petitioner is entitled to appointment on compassionate ground, submitted that the authorities were not justified in reckoning into consideration the funds received by family on account of death from employer including the pension, etc. as the basis for opining that the family was not in financial straits and consequently, for declining the prayer for compassionate appointment. He further submitted that the order spells out no reason and merely enumerates details about the movable and immovable properties of the deceased. It is further submitted that the order does not spell out any objective consideration of the various factors including marriage of three unmarried daughters of the deceased and as such, proceeds the submission, the order has been passed in utter disregard of the underlying object of compassionate appointment. The learned counsel representing the respondent Bank, on the other hand, resisted the claim of the petitioner and contended that the petitioner was not entitled to appointment on compassionate ground. He further submitted that mere death furnishes no foundation for automatic appointment and that other attendant factors such as financial condition of the family have also to be taken into account and in the instant case, the Bank scanned the case of the petitioner in all its pros and cons and boiled down to the opinion that there existed no indigent circumstances so as to warrant compassionate appointment.