K L S S PRASAD Vs. OSMANIA UNIVERSITY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS writ petition is filed seeking a mandamus declaring that the petitioners are entitled to be treated as employees of Osmania University and are entitled to be extended the benefits, such as, automatic advancement scheme, pension, gratuity, and other retiral benefits on par with the regular employees of the University and also entitled for common seniority along with employees of the Osmania University in the similar categories.

(2.) PETITIONERS joined the service of the respondent-University on daily wage basis in different posts. However, thereafter, they were put on regular time scale. According to them, they joined in the Office of the Director of Correspondence and Contact Programme, College of Education, Osmania University. In fact, in the year 1984 the Correspondence-cum-Contact Programme, College of Education, Osmania University was redesignated as Vacation Courses in Education (B. Ed. and M. Ed.), Department of Education, Osmania University. The grievance of the petitioners is that though they are working in the University, they are not being treated as regular employees of the University and all the facilities that are provided to the employees of the University are not being provided to them. They are put to insecurity of their employment and there was no mention as to whether they would be paid pension etc. , after they attained the age of superannuation. The Osmania University and the Directorate of Vacation Courses has been taking arbitrary action and has been discriminating the employees at their whims and fancies and they were not dealt with fairly. In fact, the University nominates a Professor to be the Director of the Centre and two Co-ordinators on tenure basis and the said posts are filled in by the persons among the Readers working in the Education Department of the University. The posts of Assistant Coordinators are filled up by direct recruitment. Initially, two posts of Assistant Coordinators were filled up on ad hoc basis. Later, regular recruitment was sought to be made by the University. The University has given a notification in the newspapers calling for applications and selected candidates and appointed them on regular basis. The qualifications required for the post of Co-ordinator were similar to that of the post of Lecturer. The other posts are filled up by direct recruitment. Most of the petitioners were initially appointed on daily wage basis. Later, they were brought on to the time scale of pay. Insofar as the persons working as Co-ordinators and Assistant Coordinators are concerned, their orders of appointment were given by the University. The Director being a regular employee of the University and being a Professor, draws his salary from the University funds and honorarium from the funds of the Correspondence-cum-Contact Programme. So also, the Co-ordinators being regular employees of the University got salaries from the funds of the University. The Directorate is now redesignated as Vacation Courses in Education. Petitioners made several representations stating that they have been working for more than 10 years in different posts and they be given 10 years scale as is given to all employees in the University. Respondents replied by their proceedings dated 28. 2. 1997 saying that automatic advancement scheme is applicable to the employees, who are working on permanent basis against the normal budgeted posts in the University and the employees working in the Correspondence-cum-Contact Programme Directorate, redesignated as Vacation Courses in Education are not entitled for the same. According to the University, the employees' salaries are paid from the provisions of the self-financing funds. In fact, till recently, the University was permitting the petitioners to attend for the departmental tests conducted by it. Even among the staff of the Directorate of Vacation Courses, one Pratap Reddy, who joined the service in 1984 and one Krishnaiah, who joined in 1979 were absorbed in the services of the University, though they were originally appointed in the Career Correspondence-cum-Contact Programme; whereas, the case of the petitioners was not considered. Therefore, this writ petition.

(3.) FROM the above, it is clear that the vacation courses are run under a self- financing scheme. It is not funded by the University or any other Governmental agency. However, the Osmania University has taken care to give better service conditions to the petitioners herein, such as, pay scale, casual leave, earned leave, sick leave, encashment of surrender leave etc. , on par with regular employees of the University. It is stated in the counter that a near bankrupt situation has now arisen, as there is no admission since 2001-02 for want of permission from National Council for Technical Education and the expenditure on salaries and other recurring and non - recurring expenditure is met from the reserve funds, which are slowly depleting. Under those circumstances, petitioners cannot seek any further extension of the benefits as are being extended to the regular University teaching and non-teaching staff. Since the petitioners are working under a self-financing scheme, they are not entitled for pension, gratuity etc. , as claimed by them. The writ petition is speculative in its nature and, therefore, it is liable to be dismissed.