Authorities personally responsible to pay damages for unjustified delays in considering compassionate appointment: Karnataka High Court

The Karnataka High Court recently said that failure to consider applications seeking appointment on compassionate grounds within a period of three months will make authorities liable to pay damages if the appointment is eventually granted [Hruthik N vs The Deputy Director of Public].Justice M Nagaprasanna of the High Court opined that delay in considering such applications will defeat the very object of the Karnataka Civil Services (Appointment on Compassionate Grounds) Rules, 1996."The Rule that directs appointment shall be made as far as possible within a period of three months cannot but be held to be mandatory. Therefore, the authority empowered to consider applications for compassionate appointment shall consider and dispose the same within the mandate of sub- Rule (2) of Rule 6 i.e., three months from the date of receipt of the application. Any unreasoned or unjustifiable delay on the part of the authority competent to consider would make such authority personally responsible to pay damages to such applicant by way of wages that the applicant would be entitled to, if an appointment had been considered and granted”, the Court opined. The High Court made these pertinent observations while directing the State government to consider the 5-year-old application of one Hruthik N. The petitioner had sought compassionate appointment following the death of his father, a headmaster in a government-aided school in Mysuru..The Court after examining the 1996 Rules pointed out that the application for appointment on compassionate grounds should be made within a year from the date of death of the government servant. .The High Court also observed that as per the Rules such applications shall be considered as far as possible within three months..Therefore, in order to tackle this issue of authorities not considering applications seeking compassionate appointment on time, the High Court said that the authorities would be made personally responsible for ‘unreasonable’ delay, if such applications are not considered in a time-bound manner as per the law. "This Court, in umpteen number of cases, has come across the authorities not considering the applications given seeking appointment on compassionate grounds immediately notwithstanding the need for appointment lying in its immediacy. Keeping the application pending for years or months will defeat the very object of framing the Rule for grant of appointment on compassionate grounds. It is trite that a family which loses its breadwinner would be driven to impecuniosities or become condemned by penury. Therefore, the need for immediate consideration of such representations/applications for appointment on compassionate grounds is paramount," the Court opined. .In the present case, the Court proceeded to direct the Department of Secondary and Primary Education to reconsider the case of the petitioner for appointment on compassionate grounds within eight weeks. In case of any failure to adhere to the same, the petitioner would be entitled to a salary in lowest post of Group-C till such consideration, the Court added. .[Read Judgement]