GAUHATI HIGH COURT ISSUES ORDER FOR SHAHJAHAN ALI V/S THE STATE OF ASSAM AND 4 ORS

GUWAHATI, India, Sept. 16 -- Gauhati High Court issued the following order on Aug. 18:

1. Heard Ms. A. Begum, learned counsel appearing for the petitioner. Also heard Mr. R.R. Gogoi, learned Standing counsel, PHE department.

2. By way of this writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, the petitioner, inter alia is seeking a writ in the nature of mandamus to direct the respondent No.1 i.e. the State of Assam represented by the Secretary to the Government of Assam, Public Health Engineering Department, Dispur, Guwahati6 to engage the petitioner as Grade-IV employee permanently either at Datial Bori Pipe Water Supply Scheme, Morigaon district Part under Dhing (PHE) Division, Nagaon or in any other Pipe Water Supply Scheme under said Dhing (PHE) Division Nagaon, Assam.

3. The brief facts of the case as stated in the writ petition is that on being approached by the respondent authority, the father of the petitioner i.e. Late Abdul Samad, the owner and possessor of the A-Schedule land donated a portion i.e. 1 Bigha Schedule-B land of said land to the respondent authority and the said authority constructed office house and run the office of Datialbori Pipe Water Supply Scheme, Morigaon district Part under Dhing (PHE) Division, Nagaon. It is the specific case of the writ petitioner that as per the oral agreement, the respondent authority ought to have engaged either the father of the petitioner or his family member to any Grade-IV post in the said scheme under the department.

4. It is the further specific case of the writ petitioner that since the department did not appoint or engage any of them in the said scheme and subsequently the Schedule-B land was mutated in the name of the department, the petitioner being the only interested eligible son of his father, represented before the authorities for appointment.

5. It is the further specific case of the writ petitioner that in the year 2015, the User's Committee under the department engaged the petitioner and directed him to work as volunteer in the said scheme and accordingly, the petitioner has been working as such in the said scheme since 15.12.2015. However, till date, he has not been given any remuneration for such work.

6. It is the specific grievance of the writ petitioner that the User's Committee illegally did not absorb the petitioner in a permanent post.

7. Ms. A. Begum, learned counsel for the petitioner submits that since the User's Committee had engaged the petitioner's service, the petitioner is entitled to be permanently absorbed in Grade-IV post.

8. Per-contra, Mr. R.R. Gogoi, learned Standing Counsel, PHE submits that the petitioner having been initially engaged by a Water User Committee, which is not an instrumentality of the State, the present writ petition is not maintainable.

9. I have heard the learned counsel appearing for the parties at length and perused the materials available on record.

10. Paragraph 3 to 11 of the writ petition is reproduced herein below for ready reference:-

3.That the Government of Assam, Public Health Engineering Department, was in search of a plot of land for construction of a permanent pacca house for the purpose of running the Datial Bori Pipe water Supply Scheme, Morigaon District part under Dhing (PHE) Division, Nagaon, Assam. With this end in view the said department approached the father of the petitioner namely, Abdul Samad for that purpose. The said department orally agreed to the father of the petitioner that if he allowed a portion of schedule A land for the said purpose of construction then the department would provide a job to any of his family member in the said water supply scheme. With that oral understanding from both sides the father of the petitioner donated a portion of A- Scheduled land measuring 1 Bigha to the said department which is described in detailed in Schedule-B of this petition and hereinafter referred as Schedule-B Land in short and handed over possession of the Schedule-B land to the department and subsequently the Schedule-B land was mutated in the name of the department.

*Rest of the document can be viewed at: (https://hcservices.ecourts.gov.in/ecourtindiaHC/cases/display_pdf.php?filename=tuqye3PhFs%2BBDn75ghiOpBYLLF3EPCejs%2BGubPNXVOBB9UaT7nN9Dwigr71lwO7i&caseno=WP(C)/5218/2023&cCode=1&cino=GAHC010194502023&state_code=6&appFlag=)

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