Points of Law : Appointment was against the regular vacancy though it continued to be termed as a 'Part Time' appointment apart from the fact that his work hours were of a regular employee entitling him to equal pay for equal work - Section 159 of Representation of the People Act, 1950 - Staff of certain authorities to be made available for election work.

JUDGMENT

Leave granted.

1. The appellants seek to assail the judgment of the Division Bench of the Allahabad High Court in terms whereof the respondent before us has been granted the benefit of compassionate appointment under the Uttar Pradesh Recruitment of Dependants of Government Servants Dying in Harness Rules, 1974 (hereinafter referred to as "the Rules") on account of demise of his father, who was working with the appellants.

2. The father of the respondent had earlier waged a legal battle against the appellant-Department arising out of his endeavour to get his appointment post his selection for the post of Tubewell Operator. The High Court in the impugned order opined that the selection process of the father of the respondent was unambiguous and against the regular vacancy whereby he had submitted all the requisite documents to the Irrigation Department. The case of the respondent is that the appellants held up this issue over six years and the actual appointment took place only on 29.01.2003. The respondent's father continued to work and draw emoluments for a period of 13 years equivalent to the regular pay-scale till he unfortunately passed away on 09.03.2016.

3. The case of the respondent is also that in identical matters, the appellants have appointed one Balram and one Smt. Geeta Devi, whose father and husband respectively died in harness, as Part Time Tubewell Operators and many other candidates of whose record is not available. The respondent argues that he was singled out in being denied the benefit possibly on account of the earlier litigation between the father of the respondent and the appellant-Department.

4. The case of the appellants is that the father of the respondent had not been regularized and merely grant of equivalent benefits on the principle of 'equal pay for equal work' would not make him regular employee and thus the respondent is not entitled to the benefit of the Rules for compassionate employment. In this behalf reference is made to the judgment of this Court in Gen. Manager, Uttaranchal Jal Sansthan vs Laxmi Devi & Ors. (2009) 7 SCC 205 stated to be dealing with the very Rule in question. It will be useful to reproduce the relevant extract of the Rules where Rule 2 (a)(iii) reads as under

" 2. Definitions-

(a) Government servant" means a Government employed in connection with the affairs of Uttar Pradesh who-

(i) xxxxx

(ii) Xxxxx

(ii) though not regularly appointment, had put in three years continuous service in regular vacancy in such employment;

Explanation- "regularly appointed" means appointed in accordance with the procedure laid down for recruitment to the post of service, as the case may be;"

5. Thus the respondent contends that since his father was employed for more than 3 years in continuous service, he was bound to be considered as a Government Servant and thus the benefit should extend to the respondent. On the other hand, relying upon the aforesaid judgment where the same Rules have been analyzed, learned Senior counsel for the appellants seeks to contend that this Court opined that a person not regularly appointed but who had otherwise put in 3 years continuous service in a regular vacancy cannot mean to imply that a Daily Wager would get the benefit of the Rule. We may, however, note that the Court had opined on the facts of that case holding that benefit would not accrue to the respondent. The regular vacancy was held to mean a vacancy which occurred in posts sanctioned by the competent authority. The service of the deceased employee had not actually been regularized though they have claimed regularization. The fact that the deceased employee was drawing salary in a regular pay-scale was held not to mean that they are against a regular vacancy.

6. We may note an interesting aspect pointed out by the learned counsel for the respondent, inter alia, in his synopsis (as usual the appellants did not consider it appropriate to assist this Court by filing a synopsis as had been direct