CUTTACK: Coming down heavily on Utkal University for denying compassionate appointment to the son of a deceased employee despite multiple directions over several years, the Orissa High Court has imposed a cost of Rs 1 lakh on the institution.
The amount is to be paid to the petitioner D Suresh Das, the son of the late employee D Tulasi Das, within 30 days and any delay would attract a penalty of Rs 1,000 per day recoverable from the salaries of the officials responsible, the court has directed.
Decrying what it termed “callous” and “culpably indifferent” attitude of the university, the single judge bench observed that compassionate appointment is meant to alleviate the financial distress of families who lose their breadwinner, yet such cases are being treated “sans compassion.”
Castigating the university for such conduct, he said, “The functionaries of the University appear to be as callous as can be.”
He quashed the university’s order which had rejected Das’ claim for compassionate appointment on the ground that his late father allegedly had “no lien (right)” on his post.
The petitioner’s father had joined the university as a common room attendant on November 27, 2004, and his services were regularised with retrospective effect from that date. He died in service on March 10, 2010, after which his son applied for a compassionate appointment under the university’s rehabilitation scheme. However, his claim remained pending for years, prompting repeated litigation.
A coordinate bench of the High Court had earlier in 2019 directed the university to decide the claim in a time-bound manner, a direction that was ignored. Later, in contempt proceedings, the court again ordered compliance within one month, but the university eventually rejected the claim.
Justice Shripad rejected the university’s plea of financial constraints, remarking that “showing compassion does not contravene the contours of the Constitution and directed the university to issue a compassionate appointment order within three weeks, failing which it must pay `1,000 per day to the petitioner until compliance.
