THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE SANJAY KUMAR WRIT PETITION NO.174 OF 2004 DATED 31ST DECEMBER, 2009 BETWEEN: E.Venkatesham and others … Petitioners A n d The Regional Manager, APSRTC, Medak Region, Sanga Reddy, Medak District, and another. …Respondents THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE SANJAY KUMAR WRIT PETITION NO.174 OF 2004 O R D E R The petitioners are aggrieved by the action of the Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) in not granting them the benefit of regularization of their services from the date of their initial engagement. They seek a direction to the APSRTC to regularize their services with effect from the said date with all consequential benefits. The petitioners claim to have been engaged as Casual Labour in the service of the APSRTC in the year 1986. While so, they were disengaged from service in 1989 constraining them to approach this Court by way of W.P.No.16862 of 1989. Pursuant to the interim orders passed therein they were continued in service. The writ petition was disposed of by order dated 29.09.1998 taking note of the fact that the petitioners were being continued in service and directing the APSRTC to continue them in service as long as vacancies existed. This Court further directed that any retrenchment or termination of their services should be in accordance with law. It is the case of the petitioners that two other casual labour, who were in fact junior to them and who were similarly disengaged from service, filed W.P.No.17865 of 1989 which was disposed of by order dated 05.03.1997. By the said order, this Court took note of the fact that the two casual labour were continued in service as per the interim orders in the writ petition and directed that any displacement should be only on the basis of ‘last-come-first go’ principle. Pursuant to the order dated 05.03.1997 passed in W.P.No.17865 of 1989, the APSRTC issued proceedings dated 14.07.1997 appointing the petitioners therein as cleaners on regular basis with effect from 05.03.1997, being the date of the order in the writ petition. However, similar benefit was not extended to the petitioners herein though they were covered by an identical order in W.P.No.16862 of 1989. It appears that they again approached this Court by way of W.P.No.14985 of 1999 in this regard and by interim order dated 18.07.2002, this Court directed the APSRTC to pass appropriate orders for appointing the petitioners herein on regular basis. Pursuant to the said interim order, the APSRTC issued proceedings dated 05.02.2003 appointing the petitioners as Shramiks with immediate effect i.e. from the date of the proceedings. The grievance canvassed in the present writ petition is with regard to the discrimination shown to the petitioners in so far as the date of their appointment is concerned. Sri J.M.Naidu, learned counsel for the petitioners, pointed out that the juniors of the petitioners who were covered by the identical order dated 05.03.1997 in W.P.No.17865 of 1989 were given appointment on regular basis with effect from the date of the order, i.e., 05.03.1997. However, the petitioners were singled out for step-motherly treatment by directing their appointment on regular basis to be effective from the date of the proceedings, i.e., 05.02.2003. No counter-affidavit has been filed by the APSRTC. A reading of the orders passed by this Court in the two writ petitions – W.P.No.16862 of 1989 and 17865 of 1989 – reflects that the orders were identical in nature. The APSRTC, for reasons best known to itself, implemented the order in W.P.No.17865 of 1989 immediately by issuing the proceedings dated 14.07.1997 giving effect to the regular appointment of the petitioners therein from 05.03.1997, the date of the order in the writ petition. The same treatment was not extended to the petitioners herein, who had to approach this Court again for the said relief. The interim order dated 18.07.2002 passed by this Court in W.P.No.14985 of 1999 demonstrates that it was the stand of the APSRTC that the petitioners’ case could not be considered as the competent authority had not accorded sanction. There is no explanation as to why the competent authority, who thought it fit to accord sanction in the case of the petitioners in W.P.No.17865 of 1989, did not choose to do so in so far as the petitioners herein are concerned. Thereafter, the petitioners’ services were regularized by their appointment on time scale under the proceedings dated 05.02.2003. There is no material placed on record to show that the petitioners were engaged on casual basis in the year 1986 as asserted by them. In any event, similarly situated persons, being the petitioners in W.P.No.17865 of 1989, were given the benefit of regular appointment only from the date of the orders passed by this Court in their writ petition. In such circumstances, there shall be a direction to the APSRTC to give effect to the appointment of the petitioners as Shramiks on time scale from the date of disposal of W.P.No.16862 of 1989, i.e., 29.09.1998. This retrospective regularization of their services will only be for notional and pensionary purposes and shall not entail any monetary benefits to the petitioners. The writ petition is allowed to the extent indicated above. No costs. -------------------------- SANJAY KUMAR,J 31st DECEMBER, 2009 PGS THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE SANJAY KUMAR WRIT PETITION NO.174 OF 2004 DECEMBER 31, 2009