Union of India through the Genreal Manager v. Kamlesh Kumar Nagpure
Case brief
What is this about?
Bombay High Court, Writ Petition No.18612 of 2024, decided 9 March 2026, coram Shree Chandrashekhar, CJ and Gautam Ankhad, J. Petitioner: Union of India through General Manager Central Railway (counsel: Mrs. Anjali Neel Helekar); Respondent: Kamlesh Kumar Nagpure (no counsel). Subject: first MACP eligibility date for a railway apprentice (Apprentice JE-II appointed 15 June 2004 via Railway Recruitment Board) - 15 June 2014 versus 4 January 2017; counting of apprenticeship period; absorption/confirmation relating back to date of initial appointment; Indian Railway Establishment Manual Chapter XIX clauses 1902, 1912, 1914; Article 226 Constitution of India; challenge to Tribunal order dated 16 April 2024 in O.A. No.81 of 2019. Outcome: writ petition dismissed; Interim Application No.1851 of 2026 disposed of; Tribunal's grant of first MACP from 15 June 2014 stands.
What did the court decide?
That no guarantee or promise of employment can be given to an apprentice (clause 1914 of the Manual) is a simple factual scenario applicable in all cases of probation or apprenticeship, and does not defeat the respondent's entitlement.