Jharkhand HC quashes dismissal of eight juvenile home staff, orders reinstatement

Ranchi — The Jharkhand High Court has annulled the dismissal of eight employees of the Bokaro Juvenile Home and instructed the state government to reinstate them without delay.

Delivering the judgment on Thursday, Justice Deepak Roshan ruled that the termination order issued by the government was “not valid in law,” noting that the employees’ services had been officially acknowledged by the administration before they were suddenly removed.

The case originated after the Bokaro Deputy Commissioner issued a public advertisement in 2016 to fill eight posts at the Juvenile Home. Following a transparent selection process, the candidates were appointed, service books were opened for them, and they received salaries and benefits equal to those of regular government staff—indicating full recognition of their employment.

However, roughly a year later, the government issued a termination notice, claiming the appointments were meant to be contractual but “due to departmental oversight,” the employees were mistakenly processed as permanent staff.

They were later taken back as daily wage workers from January 2018.

Challenging this decision, the employees moved the High Court. The state government argued that the appointments were inadvertent and therefore the terminations were justified. The petitioners countered that the recruitment followed due legal procedure and that administrative lapses could not be used to penalise them.

The court observed that the government had consistently treated the petitioners as regular employees — by maintaining service books, releasing salaries, and assigning duties — leaving no room for a later reversal based on an administrative mistake. It termed the termination arbitrary and unsustainable.

The High Court therefore set aside the order and directed the reinstatement of all eight employees.

With inputs from IANS