JUDGMENT :

[Sandeep V. Marne, J.]

1. Rule. Rule is made returnable forthwith. With the consent of the learned Advocates for the respective parties, heard finally at the stage of admission.

2. The petitioners are the ambulance drivers engaged through a Contractor by Zilla Parishad, Latur. They have filed present Writ Petitions with following prayers :

A) Writ Petition may kindly be allowed.

B) The Hon’ble Court be pleased to direct the respondent No. 5 to not to terminate the services of the petitioners as an ambulance drivers till permanent drivers are appointed.

C) Pending hearing and final disposal of this Writ Petition the Hon’ble Court be pleased to direct the respondent No. 5 to not to terminate the services of the present petitioners.

3. Petitioners are engaged through contractors as ambulance Drivers in the Respondent Zilha Parishad. The petitioners had earlier filed various Writ Petitions seeking prayer for regularization of their services. Those petitions were disposed of by this Court by order dated 13.01.2021. As far as the relief of regularization was concerned, this Court did not specifically grant it but it merely noted order dated 03.09.2019 passed in Writ Petition No. 10260 of 2019, in which it was recorded that the grievance of the petitioners therein was being looked into. So far as the grievance with regard to equal pay for equal work was concerned, this Court relied upon various decisions earlier passed and directed that the petitioners be paid wages at minimum of pay scales in the lowest grade in regular pay scales entitled to the regular employees holding the same posts w.e.f. the date of the petitions.

4. Now the cause for filing the Petition is letter dated 10-12-2021 issued by the Respondent Zilha Parishad to M/s Frontier Ex-serviceman Association, Latur who is the contractor through whom the petitioners are engaged. By that letter, it was informed to the Petitioners’ contractor that ambulance drivers now would be provided by CSC e-Governance India Ltd., and accordingly upon receipt of deployment of ambulance Drivers through the said Company, the work orders issued to Petitioners’ contractor would come to an end. This is how issuance of letter dated 10.12.2021 has triggered filing the present petitions by the petitioners seeking prayers not to terminate their services till the appointment of permanent drivers. By way of interim order dated 15.12.2021, it was directed that the petitioners may not be replaced by either temporary or contractual employees.

5. Appearing for the petitioners Mr. Kulkarni, the learned counsel has submitted that the petitioners have put in about 10 years of services and therefore, they cannot be displaced in an unceremonious manner that too, by other contractual employees. That services of the petitioners cannot be replaced by other contractual ambulance Drivers. He relied on the order of the Apex Court in Manish Gupta and Anr. Etc. Etc. V. President Jan Bhagidari Samiti and Ors. Etc. Etc., Special Civil Appeal Nos. 3084-3088 of 2022 decided on 21.04.2022, in support of his contention that adhoc employee cannot be replaced by another adhoc employee. He would also rely upon the decision of this Court, Bench at Nagpur in Dhiraj S. Wankhede and Ors. Vs. The Zilla Parishad, Chandrapur and Ors., Writ Petition No. 2247 of 2014 decided on 20.11.2019. He would also rely upon the order dated 08.12.2020 passed in Writ Petition (ST.) No. 92250 of 2020 Nagendrayya P. Hiremath and Ors. Vs. The State of Maharashtra and Ors. Lastly, he would contend that in similar circumstances, this Court Bench at Nagpur in Ritesh @ Jeetu Babulal Chakravarty and Ors. Vs. the State of Maharashtra and Ors. in Writ Petition No. 1305 of 2021 decided on 06.04.2022 has granted protection to ambulance Drivers of non-replacement by other contractual employees.

6. Per Contra, Mr. Bonder, the learned counsel appearing for resp