SUCHANDRA KUMAR NAYAK Vs. STATE OF ORISSA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) PETITIONER no.2 -Lokanath Sahoo having already withdrawn the writ application, it is now confined to petitioner nos.1 and 3 to 13, who have prayed to set aside the order of the State Government under Annexure -7 and to direct the opposite parties by issuing a writ of mandamus to regularize/appoint them in the post of Junior Assistants from 25.09.1997 as per the direction of this Court dated 25.09.1997 in OJC No.13605 of 1997 (Misc. Case No.1182 of 1997).

(2.) THE case of the petitioners is that they are working as Clerks on NMR basis against the posts of Junior Assistant under the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation, previously Bhubaneswar Municipality, since more than two decades. Their request to the authorities to regularize them having produced no result they approached this Court in OJC No.1058 of 1992 for regularization and for payment of equal wages for equal work. In the meanwhile, although some posts of Tax Collectors were lying vacant and the case of the petitioners for regularization against those posts was not considered, they filed OJC No.3820 of 1994. By virtue of an order in Misc. Case No.7521 of 1994 arising out of OJC No.3820 of 1994 they were absorbed on regular basis as Tax Collectors under Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation. The petitioners' earlier writ application bearing OJC No.1058 of 1992 along with Misc. Case Nos.8688 and 8689 of 1995 was disposed of by order dated 19.01.1996 with the following direction:

(3.) IN the meantime, the Government of Orissa issued instruction to all the Executive Officers of Urban Local Bodies to sponsor applications of NMR Junior Assistants for considering their case for regularization through a special selection board as the posts of Junior Assistant are in the cadre of Local Fund Service under the Local Fund Service Rules. On 13.11.1997 the Director, Municipal Administration -opposite party no.4 issued letters to the petitioners, one of which is at Annexure -3, asking them to report before the Secretary to the Government on 16.11.1997 with relevant documents for selection to the post of Junior Assistants in the special recruitment. The petitioners appeared and participated in the selection process, but they were ignored though 148 other candidates were shown selected for the posts of Junior Assistant. The petitioners' case having been ignored for Junior Assistant posts, they again approached this Court by filing OJC No.13605 of 1997. In Misc. Case No.11821 of 1997 arising out of the said writ application this Court passed order on 25.09.1997 to the following effect :