Labour & Service
'Assault On Public Servants By A Private Individual Constitutes Offence Of Moral Turpitude': Bombay High Court
The Bombay High Court has held that assault on public servants by a private individual, particularly in the course of unlawful agitation, constitutes an offence involving moral turpitude. The Court observed that such acts reflect a breach of social duty and undermine public order, thereby falling within the concept of depravity and conduct contrary to accepted standards of society.Justice...
Pension Can't Be Withheld On Basis Of Single Instance Of Irregularity; Entire Service Must Be Found Thoroughly Unsatisfactory: Jharkhand HC
A Division Bench of the Jharkhand High Court comprising Chief Justice M. S. Sonak and Justice Rajesh Shankar held that the pension of an employee cannot be withheld based on a single instance of irregularity, it requires that employee committed grave misconduct and his entire service was thoroughly unsatisfactory. Background Facts The employee (Respondent) joined the...
Compassionate Appointment Can't Be Denied On Ground Of Delay When Initial Application Was Timely: Rajasthan High Court
The Rajasthan High Court has set aside rejection of compassionate appointment to the petitioner on the grounds of the second application being time barred, opining that since no negative or positive order was passed by the State on the previous application by the petitioner that was filed within the time frame, rejection of second application was contrary to the settled norms. The bench...
Halting The Pendulum: Imperative Of Finality In Judicial Eligibility
The seat of a Civil Judge (Junior Division) is not merely a bureaucratic rung on the administrative ladder; it is the foundational bedrock of the Indian adjudicatory machinery. It is within the austere, often overburdened walls of the mofussil courts that the common citizen first encounters the formidable apparatus of the State. Consequently, the criteria for occupying such a profound constitutional office must be rooted in unshakeable clarity. Yet, for over three decades, the...
Logged In, Left Out: How Code On Social Security, 2020 Only Mentions About India's Gig Workers
Every morning, lakhs of delivery riders log onto Swiggy and Zomato. Many of them, simultaneously, are running Magicpin or have Urban Company bookings lined up for the afternoon. They are not employees. They are not contractors in any traditional sense. They are, in the words of the Code on Social Security, 2020, 'gig workers' viz. a category India's Parliament finally saw fit to acknowledge. But acknowledgment, as it turns out, is not protection.This piece argues that the Code on Social...
Merit Must Prevail For Department Allocation In Combined Recruitment: Punjab & Haryana High Court
The Punjab and Haryana High Court has held that in combined recruitment processes, allocation of departments must be governed by inter se merit and cannot be done in a manner that allows lower-ranked candidates to secure more preferred postings. The Court observed that deviation from merit-based allocation violates the principles of equality and fairness under Articles 14 and 16 of...
Jharkhand High Court Directs Withholding Of Transport Officer's Salary For Non-Payment Of Employee's Pension, Retiral Dues
The Jharkhand High Court has, in an unusual development, ordered withholding of the salary of the District Transport Officer, Palamau for failure to comply with directions to pay retiral dues, warning that continued non-compliance would result in similar action against the Deputy Commissioner-cum-Secretary, Regional Transport Authority.A Single Judge Bench of Justice Ananda Sen was hearing...
The Jurisprudence Of Command And The Constitutional Impasse
The Indian constitutional project currently faces a defining moment of friction, a precipice where the destiny of thirteen thousand Group-A cadre officers and the institutional integrity of the Supreme Court of India stand in the balance. At the heart of this storm lies the decision in Sanjay Prakash & Ors. v. Union of India & Ors. (2025 INSC 779), a judgment that did not merely settle a service dispute but sought to restore a foundational compact between the State and those...
Discharge From Air Force On Grounds Of cumulative Unsuitability; Not A Punishment: Gauhati HC
A Division Bench of the Gauhati High Court comprising Chief Justice Ashutosh Kumar and Justice Arun Dev Choudhury held that discharge of an airman under Rule 15(2)(g)(ii) of the Air Force Rules, 1969, based on cumulative red-ink entries reflecting unsuitability for service does not amount to punishment. Background Facts The petitioner joined the Indian Air Force as a trainee on...
Defence Security Corps Personnel Eligible For Second Pension; Shortfall Up To One Year Can Be Condoned: Supreme Court
The Supreme Court on March 24 held that personnel of the Defence Security Corps (DSC) who are already drawing pension from their earlier service in the Army are eligible to earn a second service pension for their subsequent DSC service, and any shortfall in qualifying service up to one year can be condoned in accordance with the Pension Regulations. The Court clarified that there is no legal...
'Long-Standing Contractors Cannot Claim Exclusive Right To Continue On Account Of Potential Loss Of Livelihood': Bombay High Court
The Bombay High Court has held that long-standing contractors cannot claim an exclusive or perpetual right to continue merely on the ground that their livelihood depends on the activity. The Court observed that ensuring a fair and transparent tender process providing equal opportunity to all similarly placed persons cannot be curtailed to preserve existing contractors' interests.A division...
