Compassionate Appointment cannot be given after a long delay of 15 years

A Division Bench of the Chhattisgarh High Court, ruled that compassionate appointment cannot be given after a long delay of 15 years. The Court said that compassionate appointment is meant to give immediate financial help to the family of a deceased employee.

An employee worked as an Assistant Teacher under the Block Education Officer, Gariyaband. She died while in service on 09.12.2000. At that time, her daughter was a minor. She became a major in 2015. On 05.08.2015, she applied for a compassionate appointment. However, the department rejected her application on 29.08.2017.

The appellant (daughter) then filed a writ petition against the rejection. The Single Judge dismissed the petition. The Judge observed that the purpose of compassionate appointment is to give immediate financial support in a sudden crisis. Since more than 15 years had passed, this purpose no longer existed.

Unhappy with this decision, the appellant filed a writ appeal.

The appellant argued that the authorities wrongly applied the 2003 compassionate appointment policy. She said that the policy in force when her mother died in 2000 was the 1994 policy. Under the 1994 policy, a dependent could apply for compassionate appointment on becoming a major. So, her application in 2015 was valid. She also said that her father abandoned the family soon after her mother’s death, and she and her siblings had to live with their elderly grandmother, which caused financial hardship.

The respondents supported the Single Judge’s order. They argued that the writ petition was rightly dismissed and that no interference was needed.

The Court observed that the purpose of compassionate appointment is to give immediate help to the family of a government employee who dies in service. It is a humanitarian measure to help the family face a sudden crisis. In this case, the appellant applied for the job on 05.08.2015, almost 15 years after her mother’s death. The Court held that such a long delay defeats the purpose of compassionate appointment.

The Court relied on the Supreme Court judgment in State of Maharashtra & Anr. v. Ms. Madhuri Maruti Vidhate. The Supreme Court held that compassionate appointment is an exception to the normal recruitment rules. It is meant only to help the family overcome an immediate financial crisis, not to provide a job equal to the one held by the deceased employee. Also, a person cannot be treated as a dependent after many years have passed.

The Court finally held that compassionate appointment cannot be used as a source of employment after many years from the date of death of the employee. The Court found that the Single Judge’s decision was correct and did not require any change. Therefore, the appeal was dismissed.

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