DINESH PRASAD SINGH Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner is a retrenched employee of the Census Department, Government of India. He was retrenched in the year 1992. At the time of retrenchment, a number of writ applications were filed before this Court. Ultimately, the Government framed a policy by which certain employees would be reengaged. Some of the persons who were aggrieved by the non-compliance of the orders of this Court filed contempt application. Several similarly situated persons who were retrenched employees of the Census Department, also filed contempt application, which was disposed of by order dated 19.08.1993 (MJC No. 1157 of 1992). The Division Bench of this Court while noticing that such a contempt application would technically not be maintainable, went on to hold that "Accordingly, the only order to be passed in this case is that the respondents are directed to treat the petitioners, who are ex-census employees, in the same way as in respect of whom orders have been passed by this Court from time to time. However, the age bar, if any, is to be ignored for this purpose because of the unfair action of the State Government this situation has arisen and, accordingly, this aspect of over age is to be ignored. However, if any application is required to be made by the petitioners before the authorities concerned for this purpose, such application shall be made within fortnight. The petitioners and all other persons similarly situated i.e. all retrenched ex-census employees, must be treated in the same fashion, whether they are party to any writ petition or not and whether any specific order has been made in their favour specifically or not".

(2.) Counsel for the petitioner draws this Court's attention to Annexure-10 dated 24.05.1999, which is a letter sent by the Commissioner-cum- Secretary of the Land Reforms Department to the District Magistrate, Bhagalpur informing him that in view of the order of this Court passed in MJC No. 1157 of 1992, the applications of all retrenched Class-Ill employees of the Census Department should be accepted and after considering their cases, they should be absorbed.

(3.) This writ application has been filed after 27 years after the retrenchment of the petitioner (the petitioner was retrenched in the year 1982), the orders passed in the writ application between the year 1990 to 1992. The contempt application was disposed of in the year 1993 with a direction to all such persons who were ex-census employees to file an application within 14 days before the concerned authorities. The District Magistrates were also directed to receive such applications in compliance with the orders passed in the contempt application.