Job on compassion ground a concession, not a right: SC

NEW DELHI: Remarking that the object of employment on compassionate grounds is to enable the affected family to tide over a sudden crisis, the SC recently observed that appointment on compassionate ground is a concession not a right.

A bench of Justices MR Shah and Krishna Murari said appointment on compassionate ground, for all the government vacancies equal opportunity should be provided to all aspirants as mandated under Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution.

“Thus, as per the law laid down by this court in the aforesaid decisions, compassionate appointment is an exception to the general rule of appointment in the public services and is in favour of the dependents of a deceased dying in harness and leaving his family in penury and without any means of livelihood, and in such cases, out of pure humanitarian consideration taking into consideration the fact that unless some source of livelihood is provided, the family would not be able to make both ends meet, a provision is made in the rules to provide gainful employment to one of the dependants of the deceased who may be eligible for such employment. The whole object of granting compassionate employment is, thus, to enable the family to tide over the sudden crisis. The objective is not to give such a family a post much less a post held by the deceased,” the court said. 

The court’s observations came in a plea filed by Fertilisers and Chemicals Travancore against Kerala HC’s order directing the company to consider the case of a woman for appointment on compassionate ground. While allowing the company’s plea, the bench said woman shall not be entitled to appointment on compassionate grounds on the death of her father in 1995. Setting aside the HC verdict, it said both the single judge and the bench were wrong. Article 14 of the Constitution deals with equality before law and Article 16 with equality of opportunity in matters of public employment.

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Emphasising the fact that education should ensure inculcation of ethical and moral values that shape intellect and every action of a student, former CJI NV Ramana has recently said that modern education system is not equipped to deal with ‘moral’ or ‘spiritual’ function of education that is imparted in modern institutions.