ALTAF KHAN Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The instant writ petition has been filed by six petitioners seeking a direction upon the Respondent Authorities i.e. NEEPCO to regularize the services of the petitioners in terms with the Memorandum of Undertaking dtd. 14/7/1999 with retrospective effect and/or not to transfer their services to NHPC and/or to stop all process of transferring the Petitioners' service to NHPC.

(2.) The facts involved in the instant writ petition are that the Petitioners herein were appointed as Muster Roll workers during the period from 1989 and 1995 in the Brahmaputra Board and were engaged in Tipaimukh Dam Project. The said project was handed over to the North Eastern Electric Power Corporation Ltd. (for short NEEPCO) on the basis of a decision by the Central Government.

(3.) It appears from the Annexure-A to the writ petition which is a Minutes of the meeting between Brahmaputra Board and NEEPCO in connection with the transfer of the Tipaimukh Dam Project held on 14/7/1999. In Clause No.3 of the said Minutes of the meeting, it was agreed by the Chairman cum Managing Director (for short 'CMD'), NEEPCO to pay the salary and wages of the existing work-charged/casual staff along with the Sub-Divisional staff deployed at Tipaimukh for maintenance of the existing assets till formal handing over of the project. In terms with Clause No.5, the CMD, NEEPCO stated that the clearance of the project by the PIB after other statutory clearances will take some time and as such, the construction activity can be started after that only. The CMD, NEEPCO therefore assured that the Brahmaputra Board Engineers and other staff would be taken as and when the PIB clearance was received by them as per the requirement of the project. It was further mentioned that the recruitment will be done in phased manner in consultation with the Brahmaputra Board. It was also mentioned that the selection and appointment will be done by NEEPCO in consultation with the Brahmaputra Board initially on deputation basis leading to permanent absorption. Further to that, it was also recorded in the said Minutes that taking people on permanent basis would be in the interest of both the organizations subject to recruitment policy.