.jpg)
Srinagar, May 27: The High Court of J&K and Ladakh has held that making adhoc and temporary appointments by a ‘pick-and-choose’ method without issuing advertisement notifications or conducting competitive examinations, and then introducing a policy of regularisation amounts to a fraud on the constitution.
Dismissing a batch of petitions by three Junior Engineers engaged by the University of Kashmir on a contractual “hire and fire” basis, a Division Bench comprising Justice Sanjeev Kumar and justice Sanjay Parihar held that public employment must strictly adhere to the constitutional mandate of equality and fair opportunity.
The court noted that the State cannot frame policies for regularization of adhoc, temporary, consolidated or contractual employees who were engaged without advertisement and a proper selection process. Constitutional courts cannot issue directions for regularizing such backdoor entrants at the cost of eligible candidates who were denied an opportunity to compete for public posts in accordance with Articles 14 and 16 of the constitution.
|