CUTTACK: In a significant judgment, the Orissa High Court has directed the state government to regularise the services of Dr Amiya Kumar Mohanty, who has been serving as an assistant surgeon for over three decades, including in remote areas of the state. The ruling came from a single judge bench of Justice Aditya Kumar Mohapatra on Wednesday.
Dr Mohanty had approached the court challenging the state government’s rejection of his plea for regularisation, issued on July 6, 2024. The petitioner, after completing his MBBS, was appointed as an ad-hoc assistant surgeon on December 23, 1992. Despite his uninterrupted service of more than 33 years, his services were never regularised.
Justice Mohapatra noted that while Dr Mohanty’s initial recruitment lacked the concurrence of the Odisha Public Service Commission (OPSC), it was not illegal but merely irregular. “The petitioner has worked against a sanctioned post without any challenge from any Constitutional Court or Tribunal, which strengthens his claim for regularisation,” Justice Mohapatra observed.
He further noted that during his long tenure, the government had opened a service book, GPF and GIS accounts for Dr Mohanty, extended pay fixation, and granted annual increments which are clear indications of formal service recognition.
Justice Mohapatra also highlighted that in previous years, particularly in 2015 and 2023, the government had regularised similarly placed ad-hoc dental surgeons, but his case was never considered. There was no evidence that the sanctioned post he occupied had been filled by OPSC-recommended candidates, further weakening the government’s stance.
The court came down heavily on the state government for rejecting Dr Mohanty’s plea, terming it “unsustainable in law” and “illegal”, and ordered the state government to regularise his service on an ex-cadre post of assistant surgeon effective from January 16, 2015, with all consequential financial and service benefits. The government has been instructed to comply within three months from the date of judgment.