CWP No. 17740 of 2009(O&M) 1 IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH CWP No. 17740 of 2009(O&M) Decided on : 07-01-2011 Balwan Singh and others ....Petitioners VERSUS State of Haryana and others ....Respondents CORAM:- HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE MAHESH GROVER Present:- Ms. Alka Chatrath, Advocate for the petitioners Mr. Harish Rathee, Sr. DAG, Haryana MAHESH GROVER, J This petition under Article 226/227 of the Constitution of India has been filed by the petitioners wherein they have made a prayer that they were working as Senior Instructors in the Industrial Training Institute and were appointed by the respondents pursuant to the response to an advertisement and after facing a duly constituted Selection Committee. It is further their case that they are qualified to hold the post and that they are working on contract basis which appointment was given for a period of six months on remuneration not less than as prescribed under the Minimum Wages Act or as fixed by the Deputy Commissioner. Despite the fact that agreement was made on 30.6.2009 regarding the dispensation of their service they have been continuing as such. The grievance of the petitioners now stems from the apprehension that their services will be dispensed with and they would be replaced by another set of employees on similar terms and conditions. CWP No. 17740 of 2009(O&M) 2 Learned counsel for the State of Haryana has contended that the apprehension is unfounded as it is without any basis. He has also drawn the attention of this Court to Annexures R-1 and R-2 which are the judgments rendered by this Court wherein it has been held that persons working on contract basis for a limited tenure have no right to impose themselves on their employer and that such an employer is very well within his rights to dispense with the services of such employees who are granted appointment on tenure basis and who have signed the agreement with open eyes. I have heard learned counsel for the parties. There is indeed no dispute about the proposition of law that a set of ad hoc employees cannot be replaced by another set of contract employees and further that a person employed on contract basis cannot impose himself on the employer to say that such an employment be continued. It is thus left to the Court to evaluate the facts and the position of law as juxtaposed against such facts. The petitioners came into service through a duly recognized procedure wherein they responded to an advertisement and faced selection process. In such an eventuality, it cannot be said that they have obtained appointment surreptitiously but at the same time they are bound by their own terms of appointment which limits it to six months. Since they have been permitted to continue as a prerogative of the employer they cannot necessarily say that their services cannot be dispensed with. But the respondents would certainly act arbitrarily if they replace these set of contract employees by another set of contract employees, in the absence of any complaints against them regarding their work and conduct. The contractual employment given by an employer gives a right to him to remove an employee if he proves to be errant or an irritant to an employer. CWP No. 17740 of 2009(O&M) 3 The contract is thus evenly balanced where the employee enters service with open eyes he cannot impose his will and desire upon the employer to say that he be continued in service but yet he is well within his rights to say that when his work and conduct is satisfactory then in the eventuality of need of the employer persisting he not be replaced by another set of persons on similar terms then as it certainly amounts to arbitrariness. For the aforesaid reasons, the instant petition is disposed of with an observation that the petitioners be not removed from service by way of replacement by another set of persons on contract basis in the event of need to employ such person subsists except on the ground that the work and conduct of any of the petitioners may be found wanting to the satisfaction of the employer. January 07, 2011 (Mahesh Grover) rekha Judge