Regularise Contract Staff, HC Orders Police Housing Corporation

HYDERABAD: The Telangana High Court has directed the Telangana Police Housing Corporation Ltd (TSPHC) to consider the regularisation of its outsourcing employees, who are working before the formation of the Telangana state and still working with the corporation.

The court has set a time limit for three months to consider the regularisation. The High Court also directed the corporation not to disturb the outsourcing employees who come to the court for regularisation.

The corporation was directed to continue the petitioners in the present position or in the corporation without resorting to any coercive steps and not to replace them with any other outsourcing candidates keeping in view of their long-standing services in the corporation.

Justice E.V. Venugopal was dealing with a batch of petitions of outsourcing employees in the Police Housing Corporation since 2012. They complained that they have been working for more than 10 years and the corporation was giving break-ups in extending their contracts on the grounds that they would ask for regularisation.

The Judge observed that the petitioners are entitled for regularisation as they were appointed in the regular selection process against the sanctioned posts to the corporation in the state government by duly following the rule of reservation, minimum educational qualification, age and other criteria as are applicable to the regular appointment.

The Judge also commented that it was discriminatory on part of the state government stand that the Police Corporation was separate entity from the state government and stating that the GO 16, dated 26.02.2016 would not apply to the outsourcing employees of the Police Housing Corporation Ltd.

GO 16 is according permission to regularise services of contract employees working in the sanctioned vacant posts and a number of contract employees appointed much later than the writ petitioners were absorbed/regularised in other departments as per the said GO, which is in force as on date.