No job for dead employee’s son from second wife , HC Upholds Western Railways’ Decision

Ahmedabad: The Gujarat high court upheld the decision of the railway department to deny a job on compassionate grounds to the son of a deceased employee. The job was denied because the son was from the employee’s second marriage and the department had no knowledge of it.

Fojdar Singh Rajput, constable with the Western Railways and posted at Panchmahal, had married for a second time without obtaining permission from his department.

He did not even submit any document showing he had divorced his first wife. However, when he passed away in March 1997 in harness, the department

did not have any information neither about his second wife, nor about a son from this second marriage.

Nearly a decade after, Rajput’s son Ram Singh requested the railway authorities to grant him a job on compassionate ground. His mother had also sought job earlier.

The divisional security commissioner turned their requests down.

Ram Singh moved the high court in 2007, seeking direction to the railways to grant an appointment on compassionate ground. He explained the delay by stating that he was only 14 year old when his father passed away. However, appearing for the Railways, advocate Sejal Mandavia submitted that Fojdar Singh had married for a second time without informing his office. While the widow’s claim was still pending, the son, too, sought a job. The lawyer also submitted that Fojdar Singh had not even intimated the department about his divorce with the first wife and his second marriage.

In such situation, it is not possible for the department to consider them as rightful heir.

After hearing the arguments, a bench of justice V M Sahai and justice G B Shah observed that although the son from a second marriage has a right to claim property of his father as per personal law, it would not entitle him to claim appointment on compassionate ground.

“Since the deceased (Fojdar) married for a second time and didn’t even inform the department, his service could have been terminated on this ground alone...More than 14 years have passed. The family has survived,” the court said delivering the verdict.

“It is well settled that compassionate appointments are provided to meet with immediate exigency where the family of the deceased does not have a source of income,” with this observation, the court rejected the petition on Monday, and upheld the railways’ decision.