It was a sweet victory to a physically-challenged woman denied appointment by railway 21 years ago though standing at 11th position in the merit list as the Supreme Court has directed not only to appoint her with all notional service benefits, but pay her Rs 3 lakhs as litigation cost for a long legal battle on her constitutional right.
The apex court came down heavily on the railways for denying appointment to Pritilata Nanda from Orissa, selected for Class-III job in the south eastern railway in 1989, on a technicality that her name was not sponsored by the employment exchange even though she had registered herself with it.
While directing south eastern railway to give her appointment within two weeks with all notional benefits, including promotion and new pay scales she would have got during the past 21 years, a bench of Justices G.S. Singhvi and A.K. Ganguly said, “the framers of the Constitution have recognised the necessity of providing assistance to the physically challenged by making it obligatory for the state.”
“But this case is one of many cases illustrative of lack of sensitivity on the part of those entrusted with the task of doing justice, which is essential for good governance,” the apex court said while asking the railway to give her appointment letter within two weeks and payment of Rs 3 lakhs within two months.
The top court said though she would get the actual monetary benefit in terms of salary from September 5, 2008 when the Orissa high court had first ordered her appointment, but she will get the salary by including all notionally-fixed benefits, including pay hike from time to time as per pay commission recommendations.