Selected Accountant Candidate May Renew Joining-Time Plea After Mother’s Illness, Uttarakhand HC Directs Decision Within A Month

The petitioner was selected for appointment as an Accountant in a 2017 recruitment process. He sought additional time to join, stating that his mother was seriously ill, but his appointment was cancelled and the post was offered to another person.

After initially approaching the CAT and then the Lucknow High Court, which the petitioner attributed to wrong advice, he sought, among other reliefs, quashing of the cancellation and restoration of his appointment.

The Court directed the respondent authority to consider the petitioner’s representation in light of the Office Memorandum dated 9 August 1995 and the prevailing rules.

It also expressed the view that a genuine request for an extension of joining time should receive a humanitarian and liberal consideration.

The Court considered the petitioner’s stated reason for seeking more time and took the prima facie view that a genuine request of this kind warranted humanitarian consideration.

Rather than deciding whether the cancellation was unlawful or directing restoration of the appointment, it required the petitioner to make a fresh representation and directed respondent no. 2 to examine it against the 1995 Office Memorandum and prevailing rules. The Court further directed that delay would not defeat consideration of the representation, given the petitioner’s explanation that he had initially pursued the matter in the CAT and the Lucknow High Court on wrong advice.

The petitioner may submit a fresh representation to respondent no. 2, which must pass a reasoned order within one month of receiving the order, considering the 9 August 1995 Office Memorandum and prevailing rules; delay is not to stand in the way of that consideration.