Appointment on Compassionate Grounds cannot be done after long duration: SC

Fertilizers And Chemicals Travancore Ltd. & Ors. Vs Anusree K.B. (Supreme Court of India)

Conclusion: In present case, the Hon’ble Supreme Court held that the Respondent in this case shall not be entitled to the appointment on compassionate ground on the death of her father, who died in the year 1995. If such an appointment is made now, the same shall be against the object and purpose for which the appointment on compassionate ground is provided.

Facts: In the present case, Appeal was preferred against the impugned judgment and order dated 31.03.2022 passed by the High Court of Kerala by which the Division Bench of the High Court has dismissed the said writ appeal preferred by the appellants and has confirmed the judgment and order passed by the learned Single Judge directing the appellants to consider the case of the respondent herein for appointment on compassionate ground.

In the said case, the father of the Respondent was employed as a loading helper with the Appellant No. 1 and expired while on duty on 19.04.1995. After a period of 14 years, after the death of the deceased employee, the respondent daughter of the deceased employee made a representation seeking appointment on compassionate basis. That her application for compassionate appointment was rejected on 12.02.2018 on the grounds that her name was not in the list of dependents submitted by the deceased employee and that the policy was to give employment to widow or son or unmarried daughter of the deceased employee. The daughter filed writ petition before the learned Single Judge. Vide order dated 13.11.2019, the learned Single Judge disposed of the writ petition with the directions to the appellants to reconsider the application of the respondent in accordance with Clause 1 of the Scheme. That on 12.12.2019, the application was again rejected to which the respondent filed a writ petition before the High Court. By the judgment and order dated 22.01.2021, the learned Single Judge allowed the said writ petition and have given directions to consider the Respondent’s claim, strictly in terms of the findings of the Single Bench. The judgment passed by the learned Single Judge was challenged before Division Bench by the present Appellant, but the appeal was dismissed.

The Hon’ble Supreme Court after taking submissions of both sides places its reliance upon the Judgments of Director of Treasuries in Karnataka and Anr. Vs. V. Somyashree, 2021 SCC Online SC 704, and N.C. Santhosh Vs. State of Karnataka, (2020) 7 SCC 617, wherein principle governing the grant of appointment on compassionate ground was summarised which are as under:-

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