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Synopsis

In a significant ruling, the Allahabad High Court has granted compassionate appointment to a daughter-in-law, emphasising her integral role within the family unit. The decision came as the son of the deceased government servant was suffering from a severe 75% disability, rendering him unable to provide for the family.

The bench, comprising Justice Vivek Kumar Birla and Justice Donadi Ramesh, underscored the societal custom of treating daughter-in-laws as daughters, thus entitling them to similar familial support and consideration.

The court said, “The main purpose of extending the benefit of compassionate appointment to the dependents of a deceased government servant is to relieve the family from distress and destitution on account of death of sole bread earner of the family.”

The court, acknowledging the exceptional situation where the husband of the petitioner, although alive, suffered from a severe disability exceeding 75%, rendering him unable to contribute to the family's income, held that this circumstance necessitated “a liberal construction of the meaning under Section 2(c) of the Rules, 1974.”

The case stems from series of tragic incidents within the petitioner's family, where her husband suffered a 75% permanent disability in a 2019 accident. In 2022, the petitioner's mother-in-law, the family's sole breadwinner, passed away while employed as a Class IV worker.

Seeking relief from financial hardship, the petitioner applied for compassionate appointment. However, her application was rejected under Rule 2(c) of the U.P. Recruitment of Dependents of Government Servants Dying in Harness Rules, 1974, which did NOT include daughter-in-laws in the eligible ‘family’ category.

According to Rule 2(c) of the U.P. Recruitment of Dependents of Government Servants Dying in Harness Rules, 1974, “Family” encompasses the following relations of the deceased Government Servant:

(i) Wife or husband

(ii) Sons or adopted sons

(iii) Unmarried daughters, unmarried adopted daughters, widowed daughters, and widowed daughters-in-law

(iv) Unmarried brothers, unmarried sisters, and widowed mothers dependent on the deceased Government servant, if the deceased Government servant was unmarried

(v) The aforementioned relations of a missing Government servant who has been legally declared "dead" by a Competent Court

Additionally, the provision includes a provision for situations where eligible family members are unavailable or unfit for employment. In such cases, the definition of “family” extends to encompass grandsons and unmarried granddaughters dependent on the deceased Government servant.

The counsel for the petitioner, pointed to the court that in a similar scenario, a Full Bench had previously ruled that a widowed daughter residing in her parents' household was considered eligible for compassionate appointment. Further highlighting that, “It is not possible to understand how a widowed daughter in her father's house has a better right to claim appointment on compassionate basis than a widowed daughter-in-law in her father-in-law's house.”

The court rendered its verdict after a thorough examination of the facts and circumstances presented in the case and taking into account the observations articulated by the Hon'ble Full Bench in a prior judgment titled, U.P. Power Corporation, Urban Electricity Transmission Division-II, Allahabad vs. Urmila Devi.

Taking cognizance of the unique circumstances and the husband's disability, the court ruled in favour of the petitioner. Consequently, the impugned order dated November 23, 2022, issued by the Joint Commissioner (Karya Palak), Rajya Kar, Sambhag-A, Prayagraj, was overturned.

The court further directed authority to reconsider the petitioner's case for compassionate appointment in accordance with Rule 5 of the 1974 Rules. The authorities were instructed to render a suitable decision within a period of three months.

 

Cause Title: Vibha Tiwari vs State of UP [WRIT - A No. - 5017 of 2023]