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Delhi Nurses Union vs. Union of India & Ors.

Writ Petition (Civil) · 2026:DHC:8911-DBDecided 9 Oct 2026New Delhi Bench
W.P.(C) 5655/2021CNR: DLHC010183882021
Justice Avneesh Jhingan · Justice Shail Jain

Background

The Delhi Nurses Union, representing nursing staff at Vallabhbhai Patel Chest Institute (VPCI), a Delhi University-run hospital, challenged the hospital's 2017/2019 recruitment rules that created a post of "Nursing Superintendent" despite VPCI having only 128 beds. The union argued this violated government "norms" which, it claimed, reserved such a post only for hospitals with 250 or more beds, and sought directions to fill promotional posts and increase nursing staff accordingly.

Decision Breakdown

The Court found that the relied-upon norms were expressly framed for only seven specifically named central government hospitals, and VPCI was not among them, so the norms simply did not apply to VPCI in the first place. Even on its own terms, the norm requiring 250+ beds for such a post did not prohibit creating one in a smaller hospital: that was a matter of administrative/policy discretion. Relying on Supreme Court precedent, the Court held writ courts cannot direct the creation, sanctioning, or staffing of government posts, as that is purely the government's own prerogative. The petition was dismissed.

Lesson Learnt

Courts will generally not order a government body to create new posts, increase staff, or restructure a cadre: these are treated as administrative policy choices for the employer to make, not something a court can compel through a writ petition, unless a specific binding rule is actually shown to have been violated.

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