Chandigarh: The Punjab and Haryana high court has directed the Punjab govt and private aided colleges to consider the regularisation of contractual assistant professors who have completed 10 years of service, subject to their service records.A division bench of Justice Harsimran Singh Sethi and Justice Minderjeet Yadav passed the directions while disposing of four petitions filed by Raman Kumar Sharma and other assistant professors, as well as the Non-Government College Management Federation of Punjab and Chandigarh and Shaheed Kanshi Ram Memorial College, Bhagoo Majra, Kharar, against the State of Punjab and others.The bench clarified that employees who have not completed 10 years of service will not be terminated and will be allowed to continue. They will be considered for regularisation upon completing 10 years, provided their service records make them eligible for the benefit. The managements may also grant regularisation before the completion of 10 years.The petitions challenged a policy under which assistant professors recruited against sanctioned posts in private aided colleges were appointed on a contractual basis for three years on a consolidated salary of Rs 21,600, with provision for regular pay scales thereafter subject to assessment of their work and conduct.The petitioners argued that since they had been selected against regular sanctioned posts through a recruitment process akin to regular appointments, they were entitled to regular pay scales. They also contended that contractual appointments amounted to unfair labour practices and that the state, as a model employer, could not extract work equivalent to that of regular employees without paying corresponding remuneration.The state and private aided colleges opposed the plea, submitting that the appointments were made under a notification dated Oct 16, 2014, which clearly stipulated contractual appointments on a consolidated salary. The petitioners had participated in the selection process and accepted the appointment terms without challenge, they argued.Rejecting the demand for regular pay from the date of appointment, the bench noted that the recruitment exercise had been undertaken in view of the state’s financial constraints. During earlier proceedings in a public interest litigation filed by Dr Jagwant Singh, the state had proposed filling 1,925 vacant teaching posts in aided colleges in three phases: 484 in the first year, 484 in the second year and 957 in the third year.The court observed: “It may be noticed that the financial constraint is a relevant factor to consider rather than ignoring the same while granting the relief sought by the petitioners to claim the benefit of regular salary from day one.”It further noted that the advertised consolidated salary of Rs 21,600 comprised the minimum pay scale of Rs 15,600 and a grade pay of Rs 6,000. The petitioners had accepted these conditions without raising any grievance before or during the selection process.Relying on the Supreme Court judgment in Mohit Kumar vs State of Uttar Pradesh and Others, the bench held that candidates who participate in a selection process without challenging the conditions of the advertisement cannot ordinarily question them after selection.The court also dismissed the claim of the association of private aided institutions against the reduction of grant-in-aid from 95% to 80%, observing that the government’s financial capacity must be considered while extending aid. Any financial burden beyond the state’s capacity would have to be borne by the private managements.On the issue of regularisation, the bench relied on its Sept 1, 2026 judgment in Panjab University and Another vs Nishi and Others, which granted regularisation to similarly situated employees who had completed more than 10 years of service.
