Supreme Court: Illegality in Haryana officer appointments cannot be regularised

The case concerns the legality and validity of the deputation and subsequent absorption of four officers from the Development and Panchayat Department into the Public Works Department (Building and Roads) of Haryana, specifically regarding their seniority positions relative to direct recruits.

Who it concerns: Appellants include direct recruits in the PW (B&R) Department (e.g., Hemant Kumar, Jagbir Singh, Sukhbir Singh, Abhishek, Vikas Kumar, Sandeep Kumar Goel, Bhupinder Singh), the four deputed officers (Pradeep Atri, Praveen Chaudhary, Pankaj Gaur, Arun Bhatia), and the State of Haryana. The judgment was delivered by Justice Ujjal Bhuyan.

What the court decided

• The Court noted that the issues in all appeals are inter-related and are being disposed of by a common judgment and order.
• The core issue identified is the legality of the deputation and absorption of the four officers and the seniority assigned to them upon absorption.

Also in the document

• The High Court had previously held that the deputation and absorption were bad in law but did not disturb the service of the officers due to their long tenure since 2005.
• The High Court declared that the deputationists cannot claim seniority over direct recruits appointed on 07.12.2007 or over persons promoted against vacancies arising before 01.07.2006 or 2009.
• A related contempt petition filed by direct recruits was dismissed by the High Court on 17.07.2023, pending the decision of the Special Leave Petitions before the Supreme Court.