Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, June 1: The Division Bench of the High Court reversed the writ court judgment directing release of remuneration of hired professionals in Srinagar Development Authority (SDA) in different fields beyond contract time.
The Division Bench of Justice Sanjeev Kumar and Justice Sanjay Parihar allowed the appeal of Government challenging the writ court verdict whereby the single judge directed the authorities to pay remuneration to the contractual professionals upto March 20, 2020.
The SDA vide Advertisement Notification had invited applications for hiring professionals in different fields for preparation of zonal plans of Srinagar city purely on contractual basis for a period of 12 months and it was later extended further six months. However, the professionals claimed that they worked upto March 20, 2020 as per the certificates issued by the then CTPK.
“In view of the aforesaid evidence on record, we are of the considered opinion that the respondents have miserably failed to demonstrate that they have performed their duties beyond the period of their contract. The experience certificates are, on the face of it, managed in connivance with the CTPK only with a view to defraud the public exchequer”, DB recorded.
The DB after perusal of the record observed that the court fails to understand as to how Fayaz Ahmad Khan, then CTPK, who had issued the twin circulars discharging these professionals from the contractual services, could issue certificates in their favour certifying that they were performing their duties beyond the period of their tenure and after the order of their discharge.
“The experience certificates as also the reports have been prepared only with a view to confer wrongful benefit upon the respondents by illegitimately taking the benefit of the fact that the respondents submitted the complete data and the equipment placed at their disposal like laptops/computers etc. for performance of their duties as late as in the year 2020”, read the judgment.
The DB said that it is clear that a concerted effort was made to give the respondent-professionals the benefit of submitting the data and the equipment much after the termination of their contract. Who would believe that the respondents, who were working directly under the CTPK, were not aware of the circulars issued by him.
“More particularly when the circulars pertained to them and were with respect to the discharge of their services. The circulars themselves clearly indicated that the same were sent to all the concerned including the respondents for information and compliance”, the bench recorded.
“For the foregoing reasons, we are convinced that the judgment passed by the writ Court is not factually correct. Consequently, this appeal is allowed and the order of the writ Court is set aside and the writ petitions dismissed”, the court concluded.
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