JAMAL UD DIN Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Petitioners engaged as Night Chowkidars for watch and ward of Government Food Stores in Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution Department, Jammu on monthly honorarium of Rs. 30/- per month since 1988 onwards. It is submitted that respondents had assured them that their services would be regularized and they will be paid minimum wages. As no action with regard to the regularization and enhancement of the wages taken been taken, number of writ petitions came to be filed before this Court for the same relief. In terms of the order of this Court, a direction was issued to the respondents to form a committee to consider the regularization of the petitioners to examine the engagement of 98 Night Chowkidars working in various Districts of Jammu Province for their regularization. These recommendations were to be submitted to the Administrative Department within a period of one month. Thus, Government Order No. 110 CAPD of 2009 dated 04.12.2009 came to be issued in this regard but this committee was reconstituted vide Government Order No. 80-CA&PD of 2010 dated 01.12.2010 but till date no recommendations in this regard came to be issued. They further submitted that they have crossed the upper age limit and the delay has affected their recommendations. Therefore, they were constrained to approach this Court by way of the writ petition and vide order dated 10.02.2014, this Court had directed the respondents not to fill up any vacancy of Class-IV unless the case of 27 petitioners for regularization has been considered.

(2.) In their objections, the respondents have denied the claim of the petitioners on the ground that they were un-authorizedly engaged by the subordinate officials and pursuant to the directions in LPA(S) No. 29/2001 titled Jamal Din and ors. Vs. State of J&K and ors. and in another LPA(S) No. 422/1999 titled Abdul Rehman Bahroo Vs. State of J&K and ors., some Night Chowkidars were allowed to draw their wages under the Minimum Wages Act. They were also directed to submit their relevant documents before the Committee but the Committee was reconstituted vide Government Order No. 110 CAPD of 2009 but till date no recommendation has been made. It is pleaded that the Division Bench of this Court vide judgment dated 09.02.2001 has stated as under :-

(3.) During the pendency of this petition, the petitioners have moved an application for seeking their regularization in terms of SRO 520 dated 21.12.2007. It is stated that the petitioners were engaged as Night Chowkidars for more than 10 years and are squarely covered by ambit of SRO 520 dated 21.12.2007 in terms of Rule 2 (j) (iii), which reads as under -