SUNITA GUPTA Vs. STATE OF HARYANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) I. Scope of Challenge in the writ petitions.

(2.) THE two writ petitions direct attention to grievance that is common to two sets of workmen in Haryana State Agricultural Marketing Board (hereinafter called 'the board'), who complained that their seniority had been upset by the impugned order that finalized the seniority list and cast the contesting private Respondents above the seniority of the writ Petitioners. The grievance of the Petitioners was grounded on essentially two sets of circumstances: one, all the contesting private Respondents, who had been ranked as seniors above them had admittedly been recruited subsequently and hence they could not be assigned higher in the order of seniority. Two, the Petitioners and the contesting Respondents belonged to two different cadres and they could not be bunched together and ranked above them. Facts require a dilation to greater details to come to grips with their grievance.

(3.) THE private Respondents had worked in the board as Clerks -cum -Auction Recorders as field staff. Their entry followed recruitment done in the year 1979 pursuant to an advertisement for 15 posts, when actually 266 persons including the contesting Respondents were recruited by the board, during the months of April to June, 1979. Since the advertisement had been issued for less number of persons namely for 15, the additional recruitment of 251 persons were terminated by an order dated 4th September, 1979. The persons who were recruited but who were later terminated, challenged the orders of termination by filing writ petitions in the High Court and by order dated 31st March, 1980, the terminations were upheld by this Hon'ble Court. However, on representation made on behalf of the board, the High Court passed the following orders: