By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, June 12: The High Court of Meghalaya has stayed the operation of an order issued by the Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council (KHADC) that revoked the regularisation of a council staff.
The order, passed on May 30, 2025 (Office Order No. 357), had cancelled the regularised status of one Banrikupar Suting and reverted him to his previous position as a casual enforcement constable. Suting had been regularised on August 14, 2024, following nearly five years of service, based on the decision of the KHADC Executive Committee.
Justice B Bhattacharjee, who presided over the case, observed that the Council’s decision lacked procedural fairness. “The impugned office order prima facie does not indicate that the applicant was issued with a notice or provided with any opportunity of hearing,” the Court noted.
While the KHADC claimed that the regularisation violated applicable rules, the Court highlighted the absence of any specific mention as to which rules had been breached.
In light of these concerns, the Court ordered a suspension of the KHADC’s revocation order until the next hearing, which will be held along with the main writ petition. The petitioner was represented by Advocates L Khyriem and W Jyrwa, while the KHADC was represented by Senior Advocate TT Diengdoh, assisted by Advocate CCT Sangma.
Earlier, KHADC Chief Executive Member (CEM) Shemborlang Rynjah had said that the Executive Committee’s decision to terminate the services of 13 employees and to discontinue the regular appointment of 30 more staff was taken because the posts were not sanctioned.
Rynjah had said that one of the new EC’s first steps was to form a committee to streamline and improve the council’s functioning.
Noting that the KHADC is currently facing a severe financial crunch, he described the decision as a necessary austerity measure to ease the council’s financial burden.
Rynjah added that each of the 43 employees had received individual letters informing them of the decision, leaving no room for doubt or confusion.
Around 27 employees of the KHADC had met with CEM earlier, seeking clarification regarding the EC’s order that reclassified them as casual workers despite their services having been regularised earlier.