BARKHA RAM Vs. STATE OF HARYANA AND OTHER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Petitioner was employed as Chowkidar on daily wages w.e.f. I.7.1972 and his services were terminated on 1.8.1994. The termination was in violation of the instructions issued by the Engineer-in-Chief to all the Executive Engineers according to which daily wagers employed on muster roll before 1.1.1996 were to be retained and the services of only those employed thereafter were to be dispensed with. The instructions further provided that no new labour be engaged in muster roll under any circumstances. Feeling aggrieved by his termination, the petitioner filed the present petition in this Court alleging that his services could not be terminated in terms of the aforesaid instructions. Notice of the petition had yet to be served on the respondents when they took the petitioner back in service on 11.10.1994. The petitioner thus remained out of service from 1.8.1984 to 10.10.1994 and is presently in service as a daily wager.

(2.) The only prayer now pressed before me is that the petitioner should be regularised in service in terms of the Government instructions dated 7.3.1996 (Annexure P.2 with the writ petition). According to these instructions all daily wagers who had completed five years of service as on 31.1.1996 and were in service on this date were to be regularised provided they had worked for a period of 240 days in each year and the break in service in any year was not more than one month. These instructions were subsequently modified on 18.3.1996 and the period of five years was reduced to three years. All other conditions remained the same. In other words, where daily wagers who had three years of service to their credit on 31.3.19% and were in service on that day could be regularised. The petitioner claims that since he had completed three years of service on 31.1.1996 and he was in service on that date, he is entitled to be regularised in service.

(3.) In the written statement filed on behalf of the respondents it is pleaded that the petitioner is not covered by the instructions because the break in service in the year 1994 was more than one month.