BABBAN PRASAD SINGH Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) PROPERTY is a perennial cause of dispute. Only the form changes. Tnere was a time when land and tenancy disputes held the centrestage of litigation. No more now. With the turn of time the attitude has changed. People care iess for land than for jobs and business. Litigation is assuming new colours and dimensions. With the growing preference for jobs specially Government and Semi - Government jobs, and with the nature and volume of Governmental activities also expanding and the Government engaging large work force, in exigency of administration, Courts are replete with petitions seeking regularisation of the casual and temporary engagements made on daily wage basis or otherwise. This batch of 36 writ petitions and one letters patent appeal involve the same dispute.

(2.) A small distinction between the cases may be pointed out at this stage. By resolution dated 18.6.93, which I shall refer to soon after in this judgment, the State Government -fixed a cut -off date, viz., 1.8.85 for the purpose of making the employees working on daily wage, muster roll etc. regular. Some of the writ petitions are on behalf of persons engaged after the cutoff date i.e. 1.8.85, who have since been either removed from the rolls or not paid wages; other petitions are on behalf of persons engaged earlier. Another category of petitions is on behalf of persons who claim to have been provided employment in lieu of land said to have been acquired in execution of certain Scheme or project, though, it must be pointed out here itself, there is no material to suggest that the engagement was in lieu of acquisition of land. As, however, they also claim to have been working for long periods the dispute in their cases also boils down to the claim for regularisation. A learned Single Judge noted that contradictory orders have been passed in similar cases and accordingly referred these cases to the Division Bench. C.W.J.C. No. 1518 of 1997(R) giving rise to L.P.A. No. 179 of 1998(R) is one such case. Therein the learned Single Judge directed the respondents to consider the cases of the concerned petitioners along with similarly situate persons for their regularisation. Dissatisfied with the order, the State has preferred the said appeal.

(3.) IN C.W.J.C. No. 15.22 of 1997(R) the petitioners were engaged to work as Mechanics and Electricians on 1.2.78 and 1.9.78 on daily wages in the Minor Irrigation Department against sanctioned schemes. They claim to be working without a single day break/leave. On 30.3.90 the Executive Engineer, Minor Irrigation Division, Ranchi prepared a list of daily wages employees in which their names were mentioned at serial nos. 97 and 105. According to the petitioners, on 18.6.93 vide resolution of the State Government contained in memo no. 5940 of the Personnel and Administrative Reforms Department, a procedure was laid down for regularisation of daily wage employees in the light of the agreement reached with the Employees ' Association. In the light of the said policy decision, a seniority list of Mechanics and Electricians working in the Minor Irrigation Division, Ranchi was published in 1995 wherein the names of the petitioners were mentioned at serial nos. 2 and 8. However, till date, their services have not been regularised. According to the petitioners, in Ranchi district alone there were about 60 sanctioned schemes in the Minor Irrigation Division upto 1989 -90, and the number has increased over the years. In Kanke Block itself, it is said, there were ten schemes the maintenance of which has been looked after by the petitioners since 1.2.78 and 1.9.79. According to the petitioners, as they are working since much prior to cut -off date and against sanctioned schemes and vacant posts, their services should be regularised. They rely on certain orders passed by this Court as mentioned in the writ petitions.