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Uttarakhand High Court · body

2010 DIGILAW 328 (UTT)

Sur Suti v. Establishment Officer G. B. Pant University of Agriculture & Technology, Pant Nagar District U. S. Ngar & another

2010-05-18

TARUN AGARWALA

body2010
Tarun Agarwala, J.:- Heard Sri Manoj Tiwari, the learned senior coun­sel assisted by Sri Alok Mehra, the learned counsel for the petitioner and Sri Rajendra Dobhal, the learned senior counsel assisted by Ms. Geeta Parihar, the learned counsel for the respondents. 2. The father-in-law of the petitioner i.e. Nanhu was a regular employee in the G.B. Pant University of Agriculture & Tech­nology, Pant Nagar, Udham Singh Nagar and died in harness on 1 1th January, 1996 leaving behind the petitioner and her mi­nor children as the only legal heirs of the deceased. The petitioner is the daughter-in-law of the deceased employee and her husband had died much earlier to the death of the petitioner's father in law. Upon the death of the petitioner's husband, the petitioner was supported by her father in law. 3. Upon the death of the petitioner's father in law, the petitioner moved an ap­plication on 15th April, 1996 for an ap­pointment on compassionate grounds. Since the application of the petitioner re­mained pending, the petitioner preferred a Writ Petition No.885 of 2004 (S/S), which was disposed of by an order dated 09th March, 2006 directing the respondents to consider the representation of the petitioner for compassionate appointment. 4. Based on the aforesaid direction, the respondents by an order dated 18th August, 2006 rejected the application of the petitioner on the ground that the daugh­ter in law is not defined as a dependant in the scheme adopted by the respondents for appointment on compassionate grounds. The petitioner, being aggrieved, has filed the present writ petition. 5. A supplementary counter affidavit has been filed in which a scheme for ap­pointment on compassionate grounds has been annexed. Chapter XIII(1)(d) of the Statutes of the University provides for ap­pointment of a dependant of a deceased employee on compassionate grounds. For facility, the said provision is extracted here-under- "(d) A dependent (wife or husband, son unmarried daughter and widowed daughter) of an employee of the Uni­versity who meets with untimely death or gets permanent disability during the service period may be appointed on any non-teaching post for which he/she is suitable and fulfils the minimum quali­fications, without selection procedure. For facility, the said provision is extracted here-under- "(d) A dependent (wife or husband, son unmarried daughter and widowed daughter) of an employee of the Uni­versity who meets with untimely death or gets permanent disability during the service period may be appointed on any non-teaching post for which he/she is suitable and fulfils the minimum quali­fications, without selection procedure. WITH THE PROVISO THAT: (i) The above facility will be given to only the dependents of employ­ees who have put in at least 3 years continuous service in the Univer­sity and only if there is no other earning member in the family of the deceased. (ii) If there are more than one mem­ber in the family of deceased, de­sirous to get employment then the appointing authority shall select one of such persons on the basis of suitability particularly consider­ing the interest of his widow and minor members of the family of the deceased. (iii) Such appointment shall be made only against an existing vacancy." 6. The learned senior counsel for the respondents submitted that the aforesaid provision indicates that a wife or husband, son, unmarried daughter or widowed daughter is only included as a dependant of an employee and that a daughter in law has not been included and, therefore, the petitioner is not covered as a dependant under the said scheme and, consequently, no appointment could be made in favour of the petitioner. 7. Similar provision has been given in Rule 2(c) of the Uttar Pradesh Recruitment of Dependants of Government Servants Dying in Harness Rules, 1974 (hereinaf­ter referred as Rules of 1974). For fa­cility, the provision of Rule 2(c) of the Rules of 1974 is quoted hereunder :- 2(c) 'family' shall include the following relations of the deceased Govern­ment servant: (i) Wife or husband; (ii) Sons; (iii) Unmarried and widowed daugh­ters. (iv) If the deceased was unmarried Government servant,, brother, un­married sister and widowed mother dependant on the de­ceased Government servant;" 8. The said provision was considered by a division bench of the Allahabad High Court in Zila Panchayat, Kaushambi & an­other Vs. Lafti Devi & another 2008 (1) A. W.C. 1035 in which it was held that Rule 2(c) of the Rules of 1974 is not exhaustive and the said definition is inclusive. Similar view was taken in the case of State of U.P. Vs. Rajendra Kumar & others 2000 (1) A. W.C. 155, Mono; Kumar Saxena Vs. Lafti Devi & another 2008 (1) A. W.C. 1035 in which it was held that Rule 2(c) of the Rules of 1974 is not exhaustive and the said definition is inclusive. Similar view was taken in the case of State of U.P. Vs. Rajendra Kumar & others 2000 (1) A. W.C. 155, Mono; Kumar Saxena Vs. Dis­trict Magistrate, areilly & others 2000 (2) ESC 967 and Smt. Urmila Devi Vs. U.P. Power Corporation Ltd. 2004 (2) ESC 180. A division bench of the Allahabad High Court in the case of Lafti Devi (supra) fur­ther held that a daughter in law, who be­comes a member of a family of her hus­band, is included in the definition of 'family' of father in law and after his death, in the absence of any other legal heir, she is entitled to claim compassionate appoint­ment. The said decision is squarely appli­cable to the present facts and circumstances of the case. The court finds that the clause (d) of Chapter XIII of the Statutes of the University is not exhaustive in nature and the dependants shown in the said clause in only inclusive. In the present case, the Court finds that the petitioner is the sole heir of the deceased father in law and was also being supported by the said deceased. In the opinion of the Court, the petitioner, being dependant upon the deceased, be­comes a member of the family and was entitled to be considered for appointment on compassionate grounds. In view of the aforesaid, the impugned order cannot be sustained and is quashed. The writ petition is allowed. The matter is remitted to the authority concerned to consider and decide the application of the petitioner on merit in accordance with law within three months from the date of the production of the cer­tified copy of this order.