In Brief
K. Ragupathi was appointed as Senior Scientific Officer at Gautam Buddha University on a contractual basis after a competitive selection process. His services were extended once but then discontinued upon expiry of the contract in August 2014. The High Court dismissed his writ petition. The Supreme Court allowed his appeal, holding that despite the contractual label, the employee had undergone full selection, received all regular employee benefits, and had an outstanding performance record. Since the true reason for termination was allegedly misconduct by a Dean (not merely contract expiry), principles of natural justice required an enquiry before dismissal. The Court quashed the termination and ordered reinstatement with continuity of service.
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