UNION OF INDIA Vs. MADHURYA KUMAR GOGOI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The Department of Tele-communication (in short, 'DOT'), Government of India, issued a Circular, on 17.12.1993, for granting of temporary status to Mazdoors (in short, 'TSM') working in the department continuously after 31.03.1985 to 22.06.1988 as casual labourers. The Telecom District Engineer (in short, 'TDE'), Tezpur, made over the said Circular of the DOT to all Heads of Sub-Divisions under his Division. The respondent herein joined as TDE, Tezpur Telecom District, when the process of conferring temporary status, on Mazdoors, was in progress. On 25.03.1996, the respondent herein constituted a Selection Committee, consisting of 4 (four) Members from different wings of the Department, including Accounts Officer, the Committee having been formed for the purpose of verifying the records and for recommending the names of eligible casual Mazdoors, from amongst the list of casual Mazdoors, forwarded by the Sub-Divisional Officers to the said Committee for granting temporary status to eligible mazdoors. The respondent herein was not a Member of the Selection Committee, he did not participate in the process of verification; but he was Chairman of the Selection Committee.

(2.) Following the recommendations made by the Selection Committee, the respondent herein, as Chairman, issued an order, on 27.05.1996, conferring the status of Temporary Mazdoor, provisionally, on 221 casual labourers. No further order was issued, in this regard, by the respondent conferring status of TSM on casual labourers working in the DOT.

(3.) By letter, dated 18.09.1997, the Chief General Manager, DOT, Assam Circle, Guwahati, issued instructions to Telecom District Manager, Tezpur, (in short, TDM, Tezpur) to cancel the said provisional order, dated 27.05.1996, whereby the respondent had conferred, as indicated hereinbefore, the status of Temporary Mazdoor on 221 casual labourers and to start afresh a process of further scrutiny in order to identify, within a period of one month, those casual labourers, who were entitled to receive the status of Temporary Mazdoors.