The Kerala High Court has issued a significant setback to the state government by halting the process of regularizing employees who have been working on daily wage and contract basis for over a decade in various government-controlled entities. This decision, coming just before the upcoming Assembly elections, has surprised the Vijayan government. Following a decline in the state government’s image after the local body polls last year, Chief Minister Vijayan is striving to restore normalcy.
In another blow on February 17, the High Court stayed a survey aimed at understanding public sentiment. The court’s order specifies that no temporary appointee can be regularized beyond September 2025. This action was taken in response to a petition alleging that the government’s move to grant permanent status to temporary employees contradicted a previous court order.
During the tenure of the first Pinarayi Vijayan government in 2021, a similar attempt to regularize temporary staff was legally challenged. The High Court had then ruled that only those appointed against sanctioned posts could be regularized, prohibiting further regularizations. The recent petition argues that the new initiative amounts to contempt of court.
The proposal for regularizing temporary staff included appointments in various institutions like gram panchayats, municipalities, and cultural organizations. Individuals serving on honorarium or daily wage basis for over a decade, such as librarians and nursery teachers, were to be absorbed as part-time contingent employees. The controversy surrounding this move stems from allegations that many beneficiaries have affiliations with the ruling party.
