Jammu, September 4: The Full Bench of the Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh High Court has held that an eligible ad hoc, contractual or consolidated government employee acquires a statutory right to regularisation upon fulfilling the conditions prescribed under Section 5 of the J&K Civil Services (Special Provisions) Act, 2010.
The significant ruling came while the Full Bench considered conflicting judgments of different Division Benches concerning the effective date of regularisation of employees appointed on ad hoc, contractual or consolidated basis.
The dispute before the court centred on whether regularisation should take effect from the date on which an employee becomes eligible, after 150 days from such eligibility, or only from the date on which the Government formally issues an order granting regularisation.
The Full Bench, comprising Acting Chief Justice Sanjeev Kumar, Justice Sanjay Dhar and Justice Mohd. Yousuf Wani, examined the statutory scheme governing regularisation and clarified the legal position on the issue.
The court observed that once an employee satisfies the statutory requirements for regularisation, the right arising under the law cannot be left entirely to the discretion or convenience of the Government.
The Full Bench made it clear that the Government cannot keep an otherwise eligible employee waiting indefinitely for issuance of a formal regularisation order or choose the effective date of regularisation according to its own convenience.
In substance, the court held that the statutory right of an eligible employee cannot be defeated merely because the competent authority delays the issuance of the formal order.
The judgment assumes importance for a large number of employees engaged under ad hoc, contractual and consolidated arrangements, particularly those who have completed the prescribed period of service and fulfilled the conditions laid down under the 2010 Act.
The Full Bench’s ruling also seeks to settle the conflicting interpretations that had emerged in earlier Division Bench decisions regarding the point from which regularisation would become effective.
The court’s observations reinforce the principle that executive delay cannot deprive an employee of a statutory benefit once the employee has fulfilled all conditions prescribed by law.
The judgment is expected to have wider implications for cases involving claims for regularisation and consequential service benefits where employees have already become eligible under the statutory framework but formal Government orders were issued at a later stage.
The ruling thus provides important clarity on the rights of eligible ad hoc, contractual and consolidated employees and places limits on the discretion of the Government in determining when their regularisation should take effect.
The judgment is likely to serve as an important reference in pending and future service matters concerning regularisation under the J&K Civil Services (Special Provisions) Act, 2010.(KNC)
