Sucharita Mohanty @ Mohapatra vs. State Of Odisha

Held

The Court held that the petitioners are entitled to the benefit of contractual appointment as per the G.A. Department Resolution dated 17.09.2013 or may be brought over to the contractual establishment. The reasoning is that the petitioners are discharging duties and responsibilities for, of, and by the Government, even though their payments are routed through outsourcing agencies. The Court found the ratio in Rashmi Rekha Dash (supra) fully applicable, stating that the petitioners stand at par with employees absorbed in the CT&GST Department pursuant to a Tribunal judgment. The Court also noted that the State's SLP against a similar regularization order was dismissed. The Court directed that such benefits should be extended to the petitioners expeditiously, preferably within three months.

Facts

The petitioners, Data Entry Operators/Computer Supervisors at the State Transport Authority, Odisha, seek regularization of their services with pay band and consequential benefits, citing similar treatment for outsourced Data Entry Operators in other government departments. They were engaged through M/s. Smart Chip Ltd., a concessionaire for the e-Governance system in the Transport Department, via walk-in interviews. The State of Odisha had entered into an agreement with M/s. Smart Chip Ltd. for implementing e-Governance services, including issuance of driving licenses and registration certificates. The petitioners joined between 2008 and 2015 and were confirmed after six months. They claim regularization after completing six years of service, referencing a G.A. Department Resolution dated 17.09.2013 for regularization of contractual employees.

Key Issues

1. Whether the petitioners, engaged through an outsourcing agency for the e-Governance project of the Transport Department, are entitled to regularization of their services as per the G.A. Department Resolution dated 17.09.2013, considering they perform duties akin to government employees. Petitioner's contention: The petitioners argue that despite being paid through an outsourcing agency, they are discharging duties for and by the government, establishing a master-servant relationship with the State. They rely on the G.A. Department Resolution dated 17.09.2013 for regularization and cite the case of Rashmi Rekha Dash (supra) and the regularization of similarly situated Data Entry Operators in the CT & GST Department as precedent. Opposite Parties' contention: The State Transport Authority (Opposite Parties) argued that the present case is distinguishable from Rashmi Rekha Dash (supra) and referred to various clauses of the agreement. However, the Court found these contentions unsubstantiated and similar to those raised in the cited case.