IN THE HIGH COURT OF ORISSA AT CUTTACK W.A. No.1911 of 2025 Purusottam Barik …. Appellant Mr.Manoj Kumar Khuntia, Advocate -versus- State of Odisha, represented through the Principal Secretary to Government, P.R. & D.W. Department & others …. Respondents Mr.J.K. Khandayatray, ASC CORAM: JUSTICE KRISHNA SHRIPAD DIXIT JUSTICE CHITTARANJAN DASH ORDER Order No. 12.05.2026 01. This Intra-Court Appeal seeks to calls in question a learned Single Judge’s order 31.10.2025 whereby Appellant’s W.P.(C) No.15791 of 2025, has been negatived. Learned counsel appearing for the Appellant vehemently argues that once the order of disengagement was quashed, the natural consequence of that would be a case of reinstatement with full back wages and/or some reasonable part thereof. We do not agree with this proposition, inasmuch as admittedly it is a case of contractual appointment as Gram Rojgar Sevak (GRS). The contractual appointment stands on a different footing from the regular recruitment in public service. In contractual appointment, the so-called employee does not attain the status, which aspect has been discussed by the Apex Court in Union of India V. Tulsiram Patel, AIR 1985 SC 1416. It hardly needs to be stated that ordinarily where a regular employee, even if he is on probation, is wrongly terminated from service and such wrong termination is quashed, the reinstatement with back wages or part thereof would follow. Apparently, the case of the Appellant is not of one of regular recruitment where the idea of reinstatement on the quashment of termination becomes invocable as mater of course. It was pure contractual engaged as GRS and that disengagement having been made wrongly, learned Single Judge had directed continuation of engagement. In such cases, the back wages, as a matter of right, cannot be claimed. In the above circumstances, the Appeal fails and accordingly dismissed. (Krishna Shripad Dixit) Judge (Chittaranjan Dash) Judge Basu Designation: ADDL. DY. REGISTRAR-CUM-ADDL. PRINCIPAL SECRETARY