The Jharkhand High Court on Friday initiated contempt proceedings against senior officials of the state government for failing to comply with its earlier directions on framing recruitment rules for assistant engineers in the road construction department.
A single-judge bench led by Justice Sujit Narayan Prasad issued contempt notices to the secretaries of the road construction department and the personnel department. The court found prima facie non-compliance with its October 4 order, which had directed the state to prepare and notify appointment rules for the post of assistant engineer.
The bench fixed January 22 next year for the next hearing, when the matter will be taken up for framing of charges in the contempt proceedings.
The case stems from a petition filed by the Diploma Engineering Association, led by Satya Mohan Ghosh. The association had approached the court alleging that despite clear judicial directions, the state authorities failed to take concrete steps to finalise the long-pending recruitment rules, adversely affecting diploma-holding engineers seeking appointments in the road construction department.
The court’s move signals a stricter stance on administrative inaction and underscores that government departments are expected to comply with judicial orders within the timelines set by the court.
