Compassionate Appointment Cannot Be Granted 26 Years After Employee's Death: Allahabad High Court

The Allahabad High Court held that compassionate appointment is granted to tide over the immediate hardships of the family due to untimely demise of the earning hand and it cannot be granted after a lapse of 26 years from the death of the employee.

“...What is most important is that 26 years have indeed elapsed since the petitioner's mother passed away. During this long passage of time, as life goes on, it is a legitimate inference to draw that the financial crisis emanating from the petitioner's mother's untimely demise would have been tided over by the petitioner, in whatsoever way it was. There is, therefore, no existing exigency to bail out the family in economic distress now, in aid of which this Court may issue a mandamus to consider the petitioner's case”, held Justice JJ Munir.

Petitioner’s mother, a Cashier-cum-Clerk in the erstwhile Bareilly Corporation Bank (BCB), died in harness on 12.11.1996, leaving behind a minor son and minor daughter. After completing graduation in 2007, Petitioner applied for compassionate appointment in Bank of Baroda (BOB) since the two entities were merged in 1999.

In 2022, Petitioner filed a petition seeking writ of mandamus to the Bank for consideration of his claim. Though the Court directed BOB to consider the claim, it was noted that the claim was highly belated and directions were only being issued because BOB had invited application from the Petitioner. After the Bank declined Petitioner's application, present petition came to be filed.

The High Court held that even though the petitioner had been pursuing his claim since 2007, he did not take any steps to enforce his rights. Since there was a delay of fifteen years in approaching the Court, i.e., from 2007 to 2022 when he first approached the Court, no relief can be granted.

While dismissing the writ petition, the Court observed that any financial hardship that would have arisen because of the death of his mother would not exist anymore.

Case Title: Avnish Tandon vs. Assistant General Manager [Writ A No. 10831 of 2023]

Case Citation: 2023 LiveLaw (AB) 235

Counsel For Petitioner: Sandeep Kumar, Sharad Tandon

Counsel For Respondents: Anadi Krishna Narayan

Click Here To Read/Download Order