The Punjab and Haryana High Court has directed the Haryana state government to make a final decision on the regularisation of contractual lecturers within six months. In a recent order, the court warned that failure to comply would result in a penalty of Rs 50,000 per petitioner, payable personally by the concerned official.
This ruling is expected to have a significant impact on a large number of contractual employees across various departments, many of whom have been seeking regularisation for years. The court was disposing of a batch of petitions filed by lecturers working on a contractual or temporary basis in the higher education department, particularly in subjects such as computer science, commerce, and management. As an interim safeguard, the High Court directed that the service conditions of the petitioners should not be adversely affected until a final administrative decision is taken.
The petitioners argued that they have been serving for several years and are eligible for regularisation under the Haryana government's policy dated June 16, 2014. They also relied on a recent Supreme Court judgement delivered on April 16, 2026, in the case of Madan Singh and others versus State of Haryana, which clarified the legal position regarding the regularisation of employees and strengthened their claim.
During the hearing, the petitioners sought permission to submit fresh representations before the competent authority for consideration of their cases in light of the apex court ruling. The state government assured the court that if such representations are filed within four weeks, the director of higher education would examine each case individually and pass reasoned and speaking orders in accordance with applicable rules and the Supreme Court judgement.
Recording this assurance, the High Court directed that the decision-making process must be completed within six months from the date of submission of representations. The court also referred to its earlier division bench ruling, which instructed the Haryana government and its agencies to reconsider regularisation claims not merely through routine interpretation of existing policies but in light of the Supreme Court's Madan Singh verdict, ensuring a more case-specific and legally sound approach.
