Chennai: The Madras High Court has restrained Puducherry Government from engaging employees in the Pondicherry Engineering College either by way of daily rated / consolidated pay or on contract basis till the posts earmarked for the Scheduled Caste are filled up by following a transparent selection process.
The matter pertains to a notification dated December 1, 2005 of the college calling for applications for appointment on daily wage basis to fill up 17 posts earmarked for scheduled caste and 2 posts for physically handicapped persons.
Subsequently, another notification was issued on March 13, 2008 calling for applications for appointment to fill up 38 vacancies of helpers, which included 19 general category, 17 posts for SC and 2 for physically handicapped. It was indicated that those who have given land to the college would be given preference.
The Puducherry Government, taking into account the request made by the people whose lands were acquired for the Engineering College, took a policy decision to give them preference in employment and made appointment of 132 persons from the category of land affected persons initially on NMR basis. Subsequently, their services were regularised in Pondicherry Engineering College.
When a writ petition filed by M. Velmurugan and G.Velusamy came up before a single judge, without quashing the order of regularisation, the judge directed the Puducherry administration to appoint the duo as helpers.
When an appeal filed by the Puducherry government came up for hearing, the Division Bench comprising Justices KK Sasidharan and R. Subramanian set aside the single judge's order and stated that the initial appointment on daily wages and regularisation thereafter appears to be the modus operandi in the Union Territory of Puducherry for legalising the back door appointments.
