Non-Reportable IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA

CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION

CIVIL APPEAL NO. 4443 OF 2008 [Arising out of SLP (C) No.15019 of 2007]

S. Nageswara Rao & Ors. … Appellant (s)

Vs.

Government of Andhra Pradesh & Ors. … Respondent (s)

WITH

CIVIL APPEAL NO. 4444 OF 2008 [Arising out of SLP (C) No.15092 of 2007]

O R D E R

Leave granted.  

2. These appeals by special leave challenge the order dated 2.9.2005 dismissing

WP No.12363  of  2005  and  the  order  dated  13.4.2006  dismissing  Review Petition

No.33006 of 2005, passed by the Andhra Pradesh High Court.  

3. The appellants allege that they were working on NMR basis at Taliperu Dam

site,  Khamman District  from 1986,  continuously for about fifteen years (with some

artificial breaks). They approached the Andhra Pradesh State Administrative Tribunal

for regularization. The Tribunal rejected their claim. The writ petition filed by the

appellants challenging the order of the Tribunal was also rejected. The review petition

was also rejected.  

.......2.

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4. The  appellants  submit  that  in  regard to  the  similarly placed  daily wage

employees  in the very same project,  the Andhra Pradesh High Court had directed

regularization, by order dated 13.4.2005 in WP No.10282 of 1998 -  Jagannadham vs.

Engineer-in  Chief,  Irrigation  Wing  &  Ors,  by  negativing  the  contention  of  the

department that  the said  daily wage employees  were not  directly employed by the

department,  but  were  employed  through a  contractor.  The  State  Government had

challenged the said order before this Court in SLP (C) No.23679 of 2005 (Engineer-in-

Chief, IWE vs. G. Jagannadham & Ors.).  This Court upheld the direction regarding

regularization, without any monetary benefits, by order dated 27.2.2007.   

5. The facts  in this  case and the facts  in  Jagannadham (supra) as  also the

contentions urged are virtually the same. In view of the above, we are of the view that

interest of justice will be served if this appeal is disposed of in terms of the decision in

Jagannadham (supra) by directing regularization of the services of appellants without

any monetary benefits.  

6. We accordingly allow these appeals and direct the respondents to consider

the cases of the appellants for regularization  without  past  monetary  benefits  and

pass  

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appropriate orders within three months from today. The three months period shall be

reckoned in respect of each of the appellants, from the date on which he reports to the

fifth respondent for regularization. Parties bear respective costs.   

.......................J. (R. V. Raveendran)      

.......................J. (Lokeshwar Singh Panta)  

New Delhi; July 11, 2008.