In Brief
A contract bus driver was terminated after a disciplinary enquiry but later reengaged on fresh appointment. He sought continuity of service from termination to reengagement. The Single Judge and Division Bench granted continuity based on an earlier batch case decision. The Supreme Court reversed this, holding that continuity cannot be granted unless the termination order itself is set aside. Since neither termination nor reengagement was challenged, seniority must count from the fresh appointment date. The Court found that applying a common batch order to individual cases without examining specific facts was erroneous, particularly where different cases involved different procedural irregularities.
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