Sunita Kumari and Ors v. State Th.Social Welfare Deptt.And Ors

ORDER(ORAL)

¶1Through the medium of the instant petition, the petitioners herein have sought the following reliefs:- "(a) Writ of certiorari quashing order No. 13-SMD of 2015 dated

22.04.2015 issued by the respondent No. 3, which has effect of disengagement/termination of the services of the petitioners as Anganwari Workers/Helpers engaged and discharging their duties as such from the last so many years.

(b) Writ of mandamus, commanding the respondents to allow the petitioners to discharge their duties as Anganwari Workers/Helpers having been engaged on ad-hoc/temporary basis and continued for number of years and discharging their duties for the best satisfaction of the authorities till date.

(c) Writ of mandamus, commanding the respondents to regularize the services of the petitioners as has been done in case of similarly situated persons of various departments including PDD and Education.

(d) Any other writ, order, command or directions, which this Court deems proper in the facts and circumstances of the case and those to be urged at the time of hearing, be passed in favour of petitioners and against the respondents."

¶2The case set up by the petitioners herein is that being fully eligible, they were engaged as Anganwari Workers/Helpers on ad-hoc/temporary basis in the respondent-department and have

been working as such in their respective Anganwari Centres in Block Budhal, District Rajouri for the last so many years.

¶3It is being next stated that despite the petitioners' satisfactory working at their respective Anganwari Centres, the respondent 3 herein being State Mission Director, ICDS Jammu issued Order No. 13-SMD of 2015 dated 22.04.2015, directing the termination of the petitioners and other similarly placed Anganwari Workers/Helpers without any lawful justification, which compelled the petitioners to file the instant writ petition before this Court.

¶4Objections to the instant petition have filed by the respondents, wherein the petition is being opposed, inter-alia, on the premise that since the petitioners' engagements were made in violation of the applicable rules and despite there being a prescribed procedure under the ICDS guidelines and Government Order No. 07-SW of 2010 dated 18.01.2010 including Government Order No. 10-SW of 2010 dated 19.01.2010, as such, the order dated 22.04.2015 was issued in compliance to the Government Order No. 384-GAD of 2015 dated 17.03.2015. Heard counsel for the parties and perused the record.

¶5According to the learned counsel for the petitioners, the issues involved in the instant petition stand settled by a Co-ordinate Bench of this Court in a batch of writ petition along with SWP No. 1222/2015 as a lead case and titled as "Sunita Kumar and ors. Vs. State of J&K and ors." reported in 2018 (4) JKLT 420 and would, therefore, pray that the instant petition be also

disposed of in the same manner and on the same analogy, to which, the learned counsel for the respondents oppose.

¶6It is discernible from the record that the petitioners herein were admittedly engaged as Anganwari Workers/Helpers in different Anganwari Centres in Block Budhal, District Rajouri and the said fact is not disputed by the respondents.

¶7A closer examination of the record as also the judgments (supra) rendered by a Coordinate Bench of this Court, inasmuch as the issues involved therein, manifestly tend to show that the said judgment is squarely applicable to the case of the petitioners herein.

¶8Accordingly, the instant petition succeeds, as a consequence whereof, the respondents are commanded to treat the case of the petitioners herein at par with the petitioners in SWP No. 1222/2015 (supra), rendering them eligible and entitled to all the reliefs thereof granted therein by this Court.

¶9Disposed of along with connected applications.

¶10Registry is directed to place a copy of the judgment delivered in SWP No. 1222/2015 on the record file of the present petition.

(JAVED IQBAL WANI)

JUDGE

JAMMU

16.12.2025 Ram Krishan

Whether the order is speaking?

Whether the order is reportable? Yes/No

Sr. No. 53 HIGH COURT OF JAMMU & KASHMIR AND LADAKH AT JAMMU Case No.:-SWP No. 1867/2015 IA No. 01/2015 Date of Pronouncement:-16.12.2025 Uploaded on:- 22.12.2025 Sunita Kumari and ors. …. Petitioner(s) Through:- Mr. Nakul Sharma, Advocate vice Mr. Ashok Sharma, Advocate. V/s State of J&K and ors. …..Respondent(s) Through:- Mr. Ravinder Gupta, AAG. CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE JAVED IQBAL WANI, JUDGE