The Calcutta High Court on Tuesday dismissed a petition seeking compassionate appointment for the son of a schoolteacher who died in harness in 2010, holding that such claims cannot be entertained when made long after the employee’s death or once the applicant attains adulthood.
Justice Amrita Sinha, while hearing the plea of petitioner Sayed Shahinoor Zaman, reiterated that compassionate appointment is meant to address the family’s immediate financial crisis and cannot be claimed as a matter of right years later. “There is no scope of reservation of vacancies to be filled up by the heir of a deceased upon attaining majority,” the court observed.
Zaman’s father, an assistant headmaster at a government-aided school in Murshidabad district, died in September 2010 after 16 years of service. Zaman was eight years old at the time.
The petitioner’s lawyer argued that Zaman’s mother had made a representation seeking compassionate appointment soon after the death, but it was never considered by the district inspector of schools. After attaining adulthood, Zaman himself applied for the appointment in June 2025, but the application remained pending.
The bench noted that the petitioner failed to produce any document showing that his mother had submitted an application for compassionate appointment soon after the death in 2010.
It further held that the law on compassionate appointment is settled: a person who has no right to apply at the time of the employee’s death cannot claim such a right upon attaining majority. The court emphasised that the scheme is not a regular mode of recruitment but an exception designed to alleviate sudden financial distress.
Given the 15-year delay, the bench held that there was no basis to direct the authorities to consider the petitioner’s request. “There is no scope to show compassion to the heir of a deceased at such a belated stage,” Justice Sinha said while dismissing the petition.
