CAT dismisses petitions of 25 LARSGESS aspirants

The Ahmedabad Bench of the Central Administrative Tribunal(CAT) has imposed a hefty fine of Rs 2 lakh each on 25 petitioners who had sought jobs in Railways under its 'LARGESS' scheme, held as unconstitutional by the Supreme Court a year ago.
Dismissing the petitions, the CAT observed that the Liberalised Active Retirement Scheme for Guaranteed Employment of Safety Staff (LARSGESS) of Railways violated the fundamental rights of other meritorious candidates who were eligible for these jobs.
Addressing a press conference here, Tribunal's Judicial Member K B Suresh, who passed the order yesterday, said the scheme, floated by the Railway Board many years ago, was a "back-door entry" for the wards of Railway employees.

Under the scheme, wards of employees such as locomotive pilots or gang-men could get a job after the employee took voluntary retirement and proposed the name of a ward as his replacement.
"I have dismissed petitions filed by 25 persons who pleaded that they should get a job in Railways under LARSGESS scheme, which I think is an unjust employment scheme. I have also imposed a fine of Rs 2 lakh on each of these petitioners," Suresh told reporters.
The petitioners had approached the CAT after the Railways rejected their job applications.