The Supreme Court has held that death of a government employee in
harness does not entitle the family to claim compassionate employment
and the person seeking appointment must possess the eligibility for the
post.
A bench of justices B S Chauhan and S A Bobde also said that the
competent authority should examine the financial condition of family of
the deceased and job should be offered to the eligible family member
only if it is satisfied that they would not be able to cope up with the
crisis.
"Mere death of a government employee in harness does not entitle the
family to claim compassionate employment. "The competent authority has
to examine the financial condition of the family of the deceased
employee and it is only if it is satisfied that without providing
employment, the family will not be able to meet the crisis, that a job
is to be offered to the eligible member of the family. More so, the
person claiming such appointment must possess required eligibility for
the post," it said.
The bench allowed an appeal filed by MGB Gramin Bank which had
challenged a 2010 judgement of the Rajasthan High Court by which one
Chakrawarti Singh, son of a deceased Bank employee, was directed to be
appointed under a scheme of compassionate employment.
Singh's father, who was working as a Class III employee with the Bank,
had died on April 19, 2006 while in harness. Singh had applied for
compassionate appointment on May 12, 2006.
The bench set aside the judgements of the High Court, saying, "The
reasoning given by the single judge as well as by the division bench is
not sustainable in the eyes of law." It also said that "an ameliorating
relief should not be taken as opening an alternative mode of recruitment
to public employment".
PTI : New Delhi, Tue Aug 20 2013