Jammu & Kashmir High Court – Srinagar Bench
Amarjeet Singh vs Tasaduq Hussain And Anr on 10 March, 2025
Author: Rahul Bharti
Bench: Rahul Bharti
41
Regular
HIGH COURT OF JAMMU & KASHMIR AND LADAKH
AT SRINAGAR
CCP(S) No. 200/2022
In SWP No. 1201/2006
Amarjeet Singh ..... Petitioner (s)
Through: Mr. Onkar Singh, Adv.
V/s
Tasaduq Hussain and anr.
..... Respondent(s)
Through: Mr. Furqaan Yaqoob, GA
Coram:
Hon'ble Mr. Justice Rahul Bharti, Judge.
ORDER
10.03.2025
1. The petitioner came to join as Government Teacher in the
Education Department of the then State of Jammu and Kashmir
in the year 1983 and was last posted in 1997 Zone Wagoora
Baramulla, whereafter he was said to have proceeded on leave
on the purported ground of illness of his father coming to report
back in the month of September 2003 when he was not allowed
to join back, which constrained the petitioner to come up with
the writ petition bearing SWP No. 1201/2003 i.e, almost after a
Page |2
CCP(S) No. 200/2022
In SWP No. 1201/2006
period of 2 ½ years of being not allowed to rejoin w.e.f
September 2003.
2. In the writ petition, no reply was filed by or invited from the writ
respondents and without closing the respondents’ right to file
reply, the writ court, by virtue of order dated 21.02.2007, came to
dispose of the writ petition with the following directions:
“The petitioner shall approach the Director School
Education who shall call for the service record of the
petitioner. In case the petitioner’s service is still intact ad
he has not so far been terminated from the services, the
Director, shall get an enquiry conducted into for the
absence of the petitioner from duty. The enquiry assigned
to a senior officer and the petitioner be associated with
the said enquiry and shall be given due opportunity to
present his case and also show cause for his absence. In
case, the concerned authorities find that the petitioner
had a sufficient cause for not attending the duty, they
may pass appropriate orders and settle the period of his
absence in accordance with the rules. The petitioner, in
such a case shall be allowed to join his duties. However,
Page |3
CCP(S) No. 200/2022
In SWP No. 1201/2006in case it is found that the petitioner has been terminated
from the service by means of a formal order, the
concerned authorities shall furnish a copy of the order to
the petitioner for appropriate remedy available to him.
The exercise be undertaken and a final orer be passed I
the matter within period of four months from the date the
copy of this order is served on the respondents.”
3. The mandate of the writ court direction was to operate in
alternative i.e, in case the petitioner was not formally
terminated, then he was to be allowed to rejoin and then
proceeded against in a departmental inquiry, and if already
terminated by a formal order then to deliver him the order of
termination in order to enable the petitioner seek out the legal
remedies.
4. Needful exercise at the end of the writ respondents was to be
done within a period of four weeks from the date a certified
copy of order dated 21.02.2007 was to be served upon the said
respondents.
5. Being aggrieved of the conduct that the incumbents at the time
serving as the Director School Education, Kashmir, the Chief
Page |4
CCP(S) No. 200/2022
In SWP No. 1201/2006
Education Officer, Baramulla and the Zonal Education Officer,
Wagoora of not having acted in compliance to the writ court
direction by reference to either of the two contingencies
attended to in the order dated 21.02.2007, the petitioner came
forward with the institution of a contempt petition, bearing
Contempt No. 400/2007 on 03.11.2007, before this Court.
6. The said contempt petition came to be responded by the then
Director School Education, Kashmir by Statement of Facts
filed on 25.09.2009 in which the following facts came to be put
up and are herein summarized:
i) Posting of the petitioner as Teacher in the Government
Middle School Wagoora in the year 1998;
ii) Petitioner proceeded on leave from 02.03.1998 to 28th
August 1998;
iii) Petitioner not reporting upon expiry of the leave and then
coming forward in September 2003 to rejoin and resume the
duty;
iv) The petitioner submitting an application for rejoining before
ZEO concerned who in turn forward the application of the
petitioner to the Director School Education Kashmir who,
in turn, vide communication No. 49/2003/4003 dated
Page |5
CCP(S) No. 200/2022
In SWP No. 1201/200630.12.2003 directed the Chief Education Officer (CEO),
Baramulla with a reference that as per the article 113 of the
Civil Services Regulations, an employee even on leave for a
period exceeding five years is considered out of
employment and as such, the Chief Education Officer,
Baramulla was directed to take necessary action in
accordance with the said provision of Civil Services
Regulations;
v) Zonal Education Officer, Wagoora came out passing order
No. ZEO/1721-23 dated 14.11.2006 rejecting the
petitioner’s application for rejoining;
vi) The petitioner being given a copy of order No. ZEO-1721-23
dated 14.11.2006.
7. In light of the aforesaid recitals of facts, Director School
Education Kashmir in her statement of facts came to seek
dismissal of the contempt petition No. 400/2007. The
contempt petition No. 400/2007 remained long pending on
the docket of this Court, during pendency of which the
original named contemnors/respondents in the contempt
petition came to be substituted by new officers posted, without
Page |6
CCP(S) No. 200/2022
In SWP No. 1201/2006
the petitioner taking any steps for bringing on record
successors in office.
8. It was in the background of the aforesaid state of pendency
that the contempt petition No. 400/2007 came to be disposed
of by this Court in terms of an order dated 12.07.2021 calling
upon the petitioner to approach the then present incumbents
with a copy of the writ court order for seeking implementation
of the same in case same had remained unimplemented and
still if the petitioner was left with the grievances then the
petitioner to file appropriate proceeding for implementation of
the same in accordance with law.
9. It is, thus, in the aforesaid manner that the institution of the
present contempt petition, bearing CCP(S) No. 200/2022,
came to take place on 17.05.2022.
10. Ever since 17.05.2022, this court is struggling to make head
and tail of the present case as to whether any act of omission
or commission has taken place either at the end of the
originally named contemnors or by their successors in office
for warranting continuation of the contempt proceedings in
Page |7
CCP(S) No. 200/2022
In SWP No. 1201/2006
the matter or the proceedings are heading towards no end
except engaging time of the court in a meaningless exercise.
11. During the pendency of this contempt petition, another twist in
tail came to take place when the Director School Education
Kashmir came forward with the issuance of an Order No.
329-DSEK of 2023 dated 18.12.2023 thereby declaring that
the petitioner is deemed of being out of government service in
terms of article 113 of the J&K Civil Service Rules Volume I
of 1956 w.e.f 30.12.2003 for being continuously on
unauthorized absence from the duty w.e.f 1.3.1998.
12. It is by reference to this Order No. 329-DSEK of 2023 dated
18.12.2023 that a plea came to be made for giving closure to
this contempt petition. The petitioner has already resorted to
legal remedy against said order dated 18.12.2023 of the
Director School Education Kashmir.
13. Given the intervening development, it is an admitted situation
before this Court as a matter of fact that at no point of time,
the writ respondents came forward with the letter and spirit
compliance of the direction as given in the order dated
21.02.2007 disposing of the writ petition bearing SWP No.
Page |8
CCP(S) No. 200/2022
In SWP No. 1201/2006
1201/2006 thereby complicating a very simple set out disposal
of the writ petition SWP No. 1201/2006.
14. The directions given in order dated 21.02.2007 were not meant
to enable the writ respondents to act post to the disposal of the
writ petition SWP No. 1201/2006 and rather the direction
warranted that if the petitioner had not already been
terminated then the petitioner be allowed to rejoin and then
proceed under the relevant services Rules, in case and if
already terminated by an order in existence then to deliver the
petitioner a copy of said order of termination.
15. Neither of two situations came to be attended by the writ
respondents and therefore, the petitioner was well within his
right to assert at the relevant point of time of filing of the first
contempt petition bearing Contempt No. 400/2007 that the
direction to the writ court has gone begging for compliance.
16. However during the pendency of this contempt petition which
is more of a revival of the original contempt petition, the
petitioner has been granted liberty by this Court to assail order
dated 18.12.2023 that would subsume to the facet of the
controversy involved in the matter and this Court would not
Page |9
CCP(S) No. 200/2022
In SWP No. 1201/2006
prejudice either of the two sides in their cause by undertaking
adjudication of the present contempt petition on the merits
and therefore, close this contempt petition with full liberty to
the petitioner to agitate his grievances before the Central
Administrative Tribunal, Srinagar Bench.
17. Nothing observed herein by this Court in the matter of
disposal of the contempt petition will be taken to be any
observation on the merits of the matter for or against both the
parties.
18. Disposed of as above.
(Rahul Bharti)
Judge
SRINAGAR
10.03.2025
Aasif
Whether the order is speaking Yes/No
Whether the order is reportable Yes/No