Order

Arijit Pasayat, J.—Challenge in this appeal is to a judgment of the learned Single Judge of the High Court of Madhya Pradesh at Jabalpur dismissing the writ petition filed by the State of Madhya Pradesh and its functionaries; thereby putting its seal of approval on the orders of the Labour Court, Jabalpur (in short, ‘the Labour Court’) and the Industrial Court, Jabalpur Bench (in short, ‘the Industrial Court’). The respondent (hereinafter referred to as the workman) filed a petition under Section 31(3) read with Section 61 of the Madhya Pradesh Industrial Relations Act, 1960 (in short, ‘the M.P. Act’). His stand in the essence was that he was in the services of the Public Health Engineering Department and was working at Jabalpur Sub-Division since 17.11.1991 as a Helper. He prayed for regularization of his services on the ground that he had rendered services for more than six months in a permanent vacant post and, therefore, entitled to be classified as a permanent employee and was also entitled to the difference of salary and consequential benefits. The claim was resisted by the State and its functionaries on the ground that the respondent was not working in respect of a perm