Contractual employees regularization: Telangana HC asks govt to continue process, but not finalize it
A vacation division bench of Justices Bollam Vijaysen Reddy and A. Santosh Reddy heard two writ petitions by unemployed youth.
By Newsmeter Network Published on 5 May 2023 2:35 AM GMT
Telangana: Telangana High Court asked the government to continue the process but restrained it from finalizing the issue related to regularizing the services of persons appointed on a contract basis.
A vacation division bench of Justices Bollam Vijaysen Reddy and A. Santosh Reddy heard two writ petitions by unemployed youth.
The petitioners challenged the legality and validity of para 4(b) of the notification published vide G.O.Ms.No.16 Finance (HRM.I) Department dated 26.02.2016 whereby Section 10A has been inserted in Telangana Public Employment Regulation of Appointments to Public Services and Rationalization of Staff Pattern and Pay Structure Act, 1994.
Under Section 10A, which starts with a non-obstante clause, the state government has been empowered to regularize the services of persons appointed on a contract basis against the sanctioned posts subject to fulfillment of the conditions mentioned therein.
Senior Counsel Satyam Reddy, appearing for one petitioner, argued that such a provision for blanket regularization is contrary to the Constitution Bench decision of the Supreme Court in the state of Karnataka v. Uma Devi. And secondly that the amendment has been brought in through the Andhra Pradesh (Regulation of Appointments to Public Services and Rationalization of Staff Pattern and Pay Structure) Act, 1994 (Act 2 of 1994) (Telangana Adaptation) Order, 2016. He said a division bench of this court in Healthcare Reforms Doctors Association vs. the state of Telangana has held that by way of an adaptation order, there cannot be a substantive amendment to a statutory provision.
Advocate General Banda Shivananda Prasad informed the Court that as per the provisions, only the state government has recently regularized around 5000 odd contract employees.
Hearing both sides' arguments, the court said the government may go with the process but not finalize the issue.
For further hearing, the matter adjourned to 08-06-2023
