New Delhi/Chandigarh, April 19: The Supreme Court has provided significant relief to thousands of contractual employees in Haryana by upholding the validity of regularisation policies enacted in 2014. In a verdict delivered by a Bench of Justice PS Narasimha and Justice Atul S Chandurkar, the court declared that notifications issued on June 16 and June 18, 2014, are legally sound, effectively setting aside a previous contrary judgment by the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
The ruling ensures that workers absorbed into regular service under these specific notifications will continue in their positions. The Bench stated that the judgment of the High Court, to the extent it held these notifications invalid, has been overturned. Furthermore, the court affirmed that similarly situated intervenors who qualify under these dates are entitled to the same benefits, pending verification by the appropriate authorities.
While the top court struck down two subsequent notifications from July 7, 2014, as “arbitrary and illegal,” it opted for a humanitarian approach regarding those already in service. Justice Chandurkar affirmed that Group ‘B’, ‘C’, and ‘D’ ad hoc employees who secured benefits under the July notifications and remain in their roles shall not be disturbed. However, the court modified their status, ordering that they be placed in the lowest pay scale for their respective posts.
This legal battle originated from a 2018 High Court decision that had quashed the regularisation policies of the then-Bhupinder Hooda-led government. The High Court had previously maintained that the state failed to follow regular recruitment modes, but the Supreme Court noted the “peculiar facts” of the case in its decision to protect the employment of those currently serving. The top court also acknowledged the assistance of Amicus Curiae and senior advocate Nidhesh Gupta in resolving the complex dispute.
