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Tinku vs. State of Haryana & Ors.

Not available · 2024 INSC 867Decided 13 Nov 2024
Not available
Justice Abhay S. Oka · Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah · Justice Augustine George Masih

Background

The appellant's father, a Haryana Police constable, died on duty in 1997 along with a colleague, Constable Balwan Singh, whose widow was granted compassionate appointment. The appellant, then a seven-year-old minor, had his name entered in the "Minor's Register" in 1998 to reserve a future compassionate appointment, but his claim could only be pursued once he attained majority in 2008, by which time roughly 11 years had passed since his father's death. The State rejected his claim for compassionate appointment, citing 1999 government instructions that required a minor dependent to attain majority within three years of the employee's death, and noting that the "Haryana Compassionate Assistance to the Dependents of Deceased Government Employees" Rules, 2006 (then in force) did not provide for a job under the ex-gratia scheme at all. His writ petition and intra-court appeal before the Punjab & Haryana High Court were both dismissed, leading to this appeal.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court upheld the rejection of the appellant's claim for compassionate appointment itself, holding that compassionate appointment is an exception to the normal rule of open, competitive recruitment and can only be granted strictly per the rules/policy in force: the 2006 Rules governing his claim did not authorise a job under the ex-gratia scheme, and the appellant could not claim parity under Article 14 with a few earlier, differently-timed cases where a job was mistakenly or exceptionally granted, since an illegal or extra-legal benefit given to someone else does not create an enforceable right for others. However, the Court noted that the widow of the deceased constable had never been informed by the authorities of her own entitlement to claim lump-sum ex-gratia compensation (as opposed to a job) at the relevant time, and that this administrative failure to intimate her was the reason she never applied for it. The Court therefore granted the widow (and the appellant's mother) one opportunity to make a fresh representation for lump-sum ex-gratia compensation, directing the competent authority to decide it within six weeks, with interest payable if the decision or payment is delayed.

Lesson Learnt

Compassionate appointment is a rules-bound exception, not a right that can be claimed by analogy to isolated past exceptions or delayed indefinitely by a minor dependent; but where the State fails to properly inform a bereaved family of the ex-gratia monetary benefits actually available to them, courts can revive that claim even years later.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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