J U D G M E N T

By way of this writ petition, the petitioners have, inter alia, prayed for the following reliefs:-

“(i) The Annexure P-11 & 12, rejecting the request made by non-teaching employee federation on behalf of the petitioners may kindly be quashed and set aside.

(ii) Respondents may kindly be directed to amend Annexure P-6 regularizing the services of the petitioners from the due date i.e., 1.10.2020 relating their appointment date to 29.09.2017 as done in the case of other similarly situated persons, even junior to the petitioners in the panel position of selection on initial contract basis, have been regularized prior to them.

(iii) The respondents may kindly be directed to correct the service record of the petitioners accordingly, relating back their appointment to 29th September, 2017 i.e., date of issue of appointment orders, maintain the seniority of the petitioners accordingly and to grant all the consequential benefits to the petitioners from due date.

(iv) The respondents may kindly be restrained from preparing seniority list of Junior Office Assistants (IT) till this petition is finally decided as in case seniority is prepared on the basis of date of regularization, then it will disturb the order of merit in which Himachal Pradesh Staff Selection Commission recommended the names of the candidates for appointment. In this way meritorious candidates in the original selection list would be placed junior to those who otherwise were below them in the original merit prepared by the said Commission.”

2. The case of the petitioners is that they were initially appointed on outsource basis through the National Institute of Electronics and Information Technology (NIELIT) on 21.10.2013, 12.09.2012 and 21.10.2013, respectively. In the meanwhile, the posts of Junior Office Assistant were advertised by the Himachal Pradesh Staff Selection Commission, Hamirpur. The petitioners applied for the said posts and as they successfully participated in the process of selection, their names were recommended for appointment against the posts of Junior Office Assistant by the Commission. This was followed by the issuance of Annexure P-1, i.e., office order dated 29th September, 2017, in terms whereof, the petitioners were offered appointment as Junior Officer Assistants on contract basis. It is further the case of the petitioners that immediately after the receipt of the office order, dated 29th September, 2017, the petitioners got themselves medially examined and completed all other formalities with regard to signing of undertakings/affidavits etc. and obtained the contract agreement form and got them typed on the specified format. The formalities were completed by the petitioners on the same day, i.e., 29th September, 2017, as the petitioners were aware that next three days, i.e., 30th September, 2017 up to 1st October, 2017 were holidays and they may not be able to join their duties on these days if they did not complete the formalities in time. The petitioners completed all the formalities on 29th September, 2017 itself and approached the office of respondent No. 3 for submission of joining reports, but the petitioners were informed that as the Director was attending a meeting in the Secretariat, therefore, their joining would be taken after instructions to this effect were received from the authority. The Establishment Branch of respondent No. 3 refused to entertain the joining reports of the petitioners and in these circumstances, the petitioners were left with no option but to submit their joining reports as per the directions of respondent No.3 w.e.f. 3rd October, 2017. It is further the contention of the petitioners that a perusal of the medical fitness certificate etc. which were submitted by them would demonstrate that the same were supplied on 29th September, 2017 and so were the other documents which were prepared by them for the purpose of submitting their joining reports. It is further the case of the petitioners that vide