CG High Court: The Chhattisgarh High Court has issued a significant order regarding the demand for the regularization of employees working at the Bilaspur Municipal Corporation. A single-judge bench led by Justice Sanjay K. Agrawal directed the competent authority to consider the representation submitted by the employees in accordance with the rules and to take a reasoned decision within three months. This High Court order came during the hearing of a petition filed by Jageshwar Dubey and other employees. However, instead of directly ordering regularization, the Court directed the concerned competent authority to decide on the employees’ pending representation as per the rules.
Representation Already Submitted to the Commissioner
During the hearing, the counsel for the petitioners informed the Court that a representation regarding the demand for regularization had already been submitted to the Commissioner of the Bilaspur Municipal Corporation. Despite this, no decision had been taken on the representation for a long time. Subsequently, narrowing the scope of their original demand, the petitioners requested the High Court to direct the competent authority to consider their pending representation and take an appropriate decision in accordance with the rules. Hearing this request, the Court directed the concerned competent authority to consider the representation and take a reasoned decision in accordance with the rules within three months.
Four Municipal Employees Had Filed the Petition
Four employees working under the Bilaspur Municipal Corporation had approached the High Court in this matter. The petitioners included Gardener Jageshwar Dubey, Electrician Chandra Kumar Nagdaune, Timekeeper Mirza Wahid Beg, and Gardener Patrick Pasty. The petitioners alleged that despite rendering long-term service, their services were not being regularized. They termed the failure to regularize their services as arbitrary and cited a violation of Articles 14, 16, and 21 of the Constitution.
Reference Made to the Circular Dated March 5, 2008
The petitioners also cited the circular issued by the General Administration Department on March 5, 2008. They contended that, based on the said circular, they too should be granted the benefit of regularization, just like employees holding similar positions or those junior to them. The petitioners had sought the regularization of their services on this very ground. However, during the hearing, they requested the High Court to direct the competent authority to decide on their representations, rather than issuing a direct order for regularization at this stage.
Decision to be taken within three months
Following the High Court’s order, the competent authority of the Municipal Corporation is now required to consider the employees’ pending representations in accordance with the rules. The authority must arrive at a reasoned decision within three months, taking into account the employees’ representations, applicable regulations, and relevant circumstances. This order has raised hopes among the Municipal Corporation employees seeking regularization that a time-bound decision will be made regarding their representations. However, whether or not they ultimately receive the benefit of regularization will depend on the decision taken by the competent authority.
