Srinagar: The High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh on Wednesday held that “a deputed employee cannot claim a right to remain on the cadre of the Government Department where he/she was deputed.”

The court said there is nothing wrong in repatriation of such employees to their parent department which they were holding in their substantive position.

The employees of Jammu and Kashmir Industries Limited (JKI) had petitioned the court challenging the Government Order dated 22 March, 2021, whereby the petitioner employees had been repatriated to their parent department, JKI.

It was stated by the petitioners that after JKI suffered huge losses, the government termed it a ‘sick industry.’ The staff of the department was deputed to different departments and it was pleaded that they were discharging their duties in the said government departments to the best satisfaction of their superior officers. However, in terms of the Government Order No. 255-JK(GAD) of 2021 dated 22nd of March, 2021, the petitioners were repatriated to their parent organisation.

Justice Ali Mohammad Magrey dismissed the plea on the grounds that the provisions of Article 52 of the Jammu and Kashmir Civil Service Regulations, 1956, in no uncertain terms emphasise that the reversion of a ‘Deputationist’ can be reversed at any stage, either by the lending or the borrowing department and that a ‘Deputationist’ has no vested right to remain on the cadre of the department where deputed.

“There, thus, is nothing wrong in repatriation of the petitioners on the cadre posts of their parent department which they were holding in substantive position,” the judge said.

The judge while giving reference to Supreme Court directives in Kunal Nada Vs Union of India recorded that “the basic principle underlying deputation itself is that the person concerned can always and at any time be repatriated to his parent department to serve in his substantive position therein at the instance of either of the departments and there is no vested right in such a person to continue for long on deputation or get absorbed in the department to which he had gone on deputation.”

NUSRAT SIDIQ