Respondent Directed to Decide Representation for Regularization of Contractual Teachers via Reasoned and Speaking Order

Nine applicants, serving as Trained Graduate Teachers (TGTs) and Post Graduate Teachers (PGTs) under the Directorate of Education, Govt. of NCT of Delhi, approached the Tribunal seeking regularization of their services.

The applicants were appointed on various dates between October 17, 2012, and August 6, 2018, following a selection process based on academic qualifications and reservation norms.

On August 22, 2025, the applicants submitted a representation (Annexure A-1) to the respondents contending that they are working against regular vacancies and should be regularized.

The applicants filed the present Original Application (OA) seeking a direction for the disposal of said representation.

1. Whether the Tribunal should direct the respondents to decide upon the pending representation of the applicants regarding regularization within a stipulated timeframe.

The Tribunal applied the administrative law principle of "exhaustion of remedies" and the duty of the executive to respond to employee representations through "reasoned and speaking orders."

The court primarily exercised its summary jurisdiction under the Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985, to ensure procedural fairness by directing the competent authority to exercise its discretionary power within a time-bound period.

The Tribunal observed that the applicants had already formally raised their grievances regarding regularization via a representation dated August 22, 2025.

Counsel for the applicants limited the prayer at the preliminary stage to a direction for the disposal of the pending representation.

Without delving into the merits of the applicants' right to regularization (to avoid prejudicing the administrative decision), the Tribunal determined that the most appropriate course of action was to compel the respondent authority to fulfill its administrative obligation to decide on the pending claim.

It directed the respondents to consider and decide the pending representation dated August 22, 2025, by passing a "reasoned and speaking order" within four weeks from the date of the order.

The applicants were granted liberty to seek further legal remedies if the resulting decision is not in their favour; all pending Miscellaneous Applications were likewise disposed of.