SURESH CHANDRA Vs. STATE OF U P

JUDGEMENT

(1.) SUNIL Ambwani, J. By these writ petitions, 48 petitioners in Writ Petition No. 29545 of 2001 and one petitioner, namely, Anand Kanan in Writ Petition No. 29547 of 2001, have prayed for quashing the newspaper publication dated 7-7-2001 by which they have been intimated that their services have been terminated with effect from 16-6-2001. They have also prayed for a direction to the respondents not to interfere in peaceful functioning of petitioners as Class IV Muster Roll employee in the irrigation department and to pay their salary.

(2.) I have heard Sri B. K. Singh Raghuvanshi, learned Counsel for petitioners and learned Standing Counsel for respondents.

(3.) LEARNED standing Counsel, appearing for the respondents, stated that petitioners are not Class IV employees. They were engaged as muster roll daily waged employee from time to time when their services were required. The Superintending Engineer (Gandak) Flood Circle, Gorakhpur was forced to issue letter dated 20-4-1999 to the Chief Engineer Gandak on account of the pressure put by the employees' Union to solve the problems of employees. The letter, however, nowhere states that petitioners have worked for more than 240 days in a calendar year. Petitioners never worked continuously for a period of eight years. Their representations were decided pending decision by the State Government, the Chief Engineer subsequently, after receiving the orders from higher authorities and giving through the contents of the letter, dispensed with their services as they were not entitled to be re-employed.