GAHC010106452025

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THE GAUHATI HIGH COURT

(HIGH COURT OF ASSAM, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH)

Case No. : WP(C)/2833/2025

NAYANMONI PHUKAN

D/O- LTE SASHI KANTA PHUKAN.

VILL- UTTAR PATHARI,

P.O- RANTHALI, DIST-NAGAON, ASSAM, PIN-782001

VERSUS

THE STATE OF ASSAM AND ORS

TO BE REPRESENTED BY THE COMMISSIONER AND SECRETARY TO THE

GOVT OF ASSAM, PWD DEPARTMENT

DISPUR, GUWAHATI-781006

2:THE CHIEF SECRETARY CUM CHAIRMAN

STATE LEVEL COMMITTEE

GOVT. OF ASSAM

DISPUR

GUWAHATI-781006

3:THE DISTRICT COMMISSIONER

CUM CHAIRMAN

DISTRICT LEVEL SELECTION COMMITTEE

NAGAON DISTRICT

ASSAM

PIN-782001

4:THE CHIEF ENGINEER

PWD

ROADS ASSAM

CHANDMARI

GUWAHATI-03

5:THE SUPERINTENDING ENGINEER PWD NAGAON ROAD CIRCLE NAGAON ASSAM PIN-78200 Advocate for the Petitioner : MR. M DEKA, MD S HOQUE Advocate for the Respondent : GA, ASSAM, SC, PWD ROAD BEFORE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE N. UNNI KRISHNAN NAIR

ORDER

Date : 12-11-2025 Heard Mr. S. Haque, learned counsel for the petitioner. Also heard Mr. B. Gogoi, learned Addl. AG, Assam appearing for the respondent Nos. 1, 4 & 5 as well as Mr. J.K. Goswami, learned Addl. Sr. Govt. Advocate, Assam appearing for the respondent Nos. 2 and 3.

2. The petitioner in the present proceeding has prayed for a direction upon the respondent authority to consider her case for appointment on compassionate ground. The petitioner has also assailed the decision arrived at by the State Level Committee (SLC), in its meeting held on 31-12-2008, rejecting her claim for appointment on compassionate grounds.

3. As projected in the writ petition, the father of the petitioner while working as Upper Division Assistant in the establishment of the Superintending Engineer, Public Works Department (PWD), Nagaon (Road) Division, Nagaon, had died-in-harness on 07- 03-2008. It is further projected thereof that on 27-03-2008, the petitioner had submitted an application for consideration her case for appointment on compassionate ground. The said application of the petitioner is projected to have been considered by the District Level Committee (DLC) in its meeting held on 10-12-2013. The DLC on consideration of the case of the petitioner proceeded to recommend her case for appointment on compassionate ground and forwarded the same to the State Level Committee (SLC) for consideration. The SLC in its meeting held on 31-12-2018 had considered the recommendation made in favour of the petitioner by the jurisdictional DLC and on such consideration rejected the claim of the petitioner on the ground that the petitioner had applied after lapse of one year from the date of death of her father and also there was no vacant post within the 5% quota for appointment on compassionate grounds. It is further projected that the petitioner had assailed the decision arrived at by the SLC in its meeting held on 31-12-2018 by way of instituting a writ petition being W.P.(C) No. 754/2021. It is projected that the said writ petition was withdrawn by the petitioner with liberty to file a fresh writ petition. Accordingly, the present writ petition has been instituted.

4. I have heard the learned counsel for the parties and also perused the materials available on record.

5. As noticed hereinabove, the father of the petitioner died-in-harness on 07-03- 2008. More than 17 (seventeen) years have lapsed since the death of the father of the petitioner. This Court on perusal of the materials coming on record finds that the recommendation in case of the petitioner by the DLC was made on 10-12-2013. The petitioner had approached this Court for the first time only in the year 2021 by way of instituting a writ petition being W.P.(C) No. 754/2021, assailing rejection of her claim by the SLC in its meeting held on 31-12-2018. This Court finds that the petitioner after submission of her application on 27-03-2008 was not diligently pursing the matter with regard to her appointment on compassionate ground. Further, this Court also notices that the petitioner and her family members have sustained for the long peri