Labour & Service
Identical Evidence: Orissa High Court Quashes Disciplinary Action After Criminal Court Acquittal
A Division Bench of the Orissa High Court comprising Justice Manash Ranjan Pathak and Justice Sibo Sankar Mishra held that departmental proceedings based on identical evidence must be set aside when a criminal court has acquitted the employee on the merits, leaving the disciplinary findings based on “no evidence.” Background Facts The employee (respondent) was serving as a...
June 30 Retirement No Bar To July 1 Annual Increment- Delhi High Court
A Division Bench of the Delhi High Court comprising Justice Anil Kshetarpal and Justice Amit Mahajan held that a government employee retiring on 30 June is entitled to increment due on 1 July, as the increment is earned for the completed year of service preceding retirement and cannot be denied merely because it becomes payable after retirement. Background Facts The...
Myth Of Formalisation: Economic Survey Projections And Governance Challenges In India's Labour Codes
India's new labour codes have been promoted as reforms with the potential to bring major change whose draft rule was issued in December 2025. The Economic Survey 2025–26 presents an optimistic outlook: the codes are expected to raise formalisation from 60.4% to 75.5%, create 77 lakh jobs, lower unemployment, increase female labour force participation, and add 1.25% to GDP by 2029–30. These projections are based on the assumption that simplifying compliance for firms will encourage formalisation...
Punjab & Haryana High Court Strikes Down 1997 Rule Mandating Govt-Parity Retiral Benefits For Cooperative Society Employees
The Punjab & Haryana High Court has held that the 1997 Service Rules mandating retiral benefits for employees of cooperative societies at par with government employees are ultra vires the parent statute and unenforceable. The Court observed that the State Government had no authority to further delegate its rule-making power to the Registrar, and such sub-delegation was neither...
Pay Commission Benefits Can't Be Denied By Creating Additional Conditions: Supreme Court
The Supreme Court on April 1 observed that the Central Pay Commission's recommendation cannot be loosely construed to deny a benefit to an employee by creating an additional condition to deny the benefit of the pay commission. A bench of Justice Pankaj Mithal and Justice S.V.N. Bhatti heard the matter concerning the respondents, who had initially joined the Border Roads Organisation...
Able-Bodied Person Cannot Avoid Maintenance By Pleading Unemployment: Uttarakhand High Court
The Uttarakhand High Court has held that a mere plea of unemployment cannot absolve an able-bodied and qualified individual of his obligation to maintain his minor children under Section 125 CrPC. The Court reiterated the principle that an able-bodied person is presumed to have the capacity to earn, and voluntary or unsubstantiated unemployment cannot be used to evade statutory...
Patna HC Quashes Criminal Proceedings Against Forest Officer, Says Public Servants Must Be Protected From Vexatious Prosecution
The Patna High Court has held that criminal proceedings initiated against a public servant without prior sanction under Section 197 CrPC are void ab initio, reiterating that such protection is essential to ensure fearless discharge of official duties. A Single Judge Bench of Justice Jitendra Kumar was hearing a criminal miscellaneous petition under Section 482 CrPC seeking quashing of the...
Karnataka HC Dismisses Direct Recruit District Judges' Challenge To Seniority List; Directs State To Notify Cadre Strength Within One Month
The Karnataka High Court has directed the State Government to formally notify the cadre strength of judicial officers within a fixed timeline while also enunciating the legal framework governing the seniority and cadre strength of District Judges. The court has also asked the state to implement the 4-point roster to structure promotions of judicial officers.The Full Bench comprising Justice...
In Departmental Enquiry, Document Not Admitted By Employee Must Be Proved Through Witness : Supreme Court
The Supreme Court on Wednesday (April 1) has observed that when the employee doesn't admit the charges labelled against him, he cannot be dismissed from the services based on an employer's unproven documentary evidence. The Court emphasized that employers must prove such documentary evidence through witnesses, so that the employee could have an opportunity to cross-examine the witness.“Even...
'Blanket Approach Of Denying Public Employment To Persons Named In FIR Is Contrary To Fairness': Patna High Court
The Patna High Court has held that the sealed cover procedure cannot be invoked merely on the basis of pendency of an FIR, reiterating that denial of appointment on the basis of untested allegations violates settled constitutional principles under Articles 14 and 16.A Single Judge Bench of Justice Alok Kumar Sinha was hearing a writ petition filed by candidates who had applied pursuant...
Punjab & Haryana High Court Allows Sports Category Candidate To Appear In Exam During Pendency Of Dispute Over Sports Gradation Certificate
The Punjab and Haryana High Court has allowed a candidate to participate in a recruitment process during the pendency of a dispute regarding the submission of a Sports Gradation Certificate. Justice Namit Kumar was hearing a writ petition filed by a candidate who had applied under the Sports Person category in a recruitment process conducted by the Punjab Public Service Commission. The...