The court deferred its decision pending a Supreme Court ruling on the validity of rules affecting employee termination.

Court No. 2 IN THE HIGH COURT AT CALCUTTA Constitutional Writ Jurisdiction

15.7.2025 Appellate Side (Item No. 2)

(Moumita)

W.P.A. 7199 of 2023 with CAN 1 of 2023 CAN 2 of 2023 CAN 3 of 2024 CAN 4 of 2024 CAN 5 of 2024 CAN 6 of 2025 Sandip Kumar Mallick VS Union of India & Ors.

Mr. Debarshi Das Mr. Amit Pan …. For the Petitioner Mr. Avishek Guha Mr. Subhajit Das …. For L.I.C.I./Respondent nos. 2 to 5 In Re: CAN 6 of 2025 Affidavit of service filed in Court today, is taken on record.

Mr. Debarshi Das, learned advocate appears for the petitioner.

Mr. Avishek Guha, learned counsel appears for LICI with Mr. Subhajit Das, learned counsel.

None appears for Union of India.

This is an interlocutory application filed in the pending writ petition with the following prayers:

a. “Stay of operation of the 1 notice of show cause dated 16th June, under Annexure –III, and/or the same be kept in abeyance till disposal of the said writ petition, being WPA No. 7199 of 2023;

b. Stay of operation of Rule 7 of the Life Insurance Corporation of India Development Officers (Revision of Certain Terms and Conditions of Service) Rules, 2009 (hereinafter referred to as Rules, 2009) amended as Life Insurance Corporation of India Development Officers (Revision of Certain Terms and Conditions of Service) Amendments Rules, 2016 notified by Gazette of India on

22.01.2016;

c. Mandatory injunction directing the respondent no. 5 to not to give effect to or proceed with the notice of show cause dated 16th June, 2025, under Annexure – III;

d. Mandatory injunction directing the respondent no. 5 to abstain from service a notice of termination mechanically;

e. Ad-interim orders in terms of prayer a., b., c. and d. above;

f. Costs of and incidental to this application;

g. Such further and/or or other order and/or orders and/or direction(s) be given as this Hon’ble Court may deed fit and proper to meet the ends of justice.’’

Prayers (b) and (c) from the writ petition are also quoted below:

b. “A declaration do issue declaring Rules 2, 3, 6, 7 and 8 of the Life Insurance Corporation of India Development Officers (Revision of Certain Terms and Conditions of Service) Rules, 2009 ultra vires Articles 14, 16, 20(2) and 21 of the Constitution of India for conferring uncanalised and unbridled powers upon the Respondents to terminate the services of a class of employees in an unreasonable and illegal manner;

c. A declaration do issue declaring Rules 2, 3, 6, 7 and 8 of the Life Insurance Corporation of India Development Officers (Revision of Certain Terms and Conditions of Service) Amendments Rules, 2016 ultra vires Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution of India since it is tantamount to creation of a class within a class of permanent Class II category Development Officers in an unreasonable, illegal and discriminatory manner;”

Claiming identical reliefs several writ petitions are pending before this Court in which diverse orders were passed from time to time. One such order dated April 10, 2025 was also passed by this Court in W.P.A. 7514 of 2025 In the matter of: Koushik Mondal Vs. Union of India & Ors.

Mr. Debarshi Das, learned counsel appearing for the petitioner has drawn attention of this Court to an interim order dated April

15, 2024 passed by a co-ordinate bench. L.I.C.I. has preferred an appeal from the same being MAT 1222 of 2024. The appeal was disposed of with the following observations:

“2. By the impugned order, learned Single Judge noticed that there are subsisting interim orders passed by the Coordinate Bench in a number of writ petitions spanning from 2019 till 2023. In view of subsistence of such interim orders, learned Single Judge proceeded to grant the same interim order to the writ petitioner by the impugned order.

3. Learned advocate appearing for the appellant submits that, there are orders of different High Courts which did not grant such interim order.

4. The writ petition is yet to be finally decided. There subsists interim orders passed in a number of writ petitions sp