The Supreme Court has upheld the Himachal High Court's ruling regarding the employment status of mid-day meal workers. The Himachal High Court had determined that mid-day meal employees should not be classified as government employees.

A division bench led by Justice Hima Kohli and Justice Rajesh Bindal has firmly declined to intervene in the High Court's decision, as evidenced by their rejection of Prem Singh's petition.

Case Brief -

On November 12, 2018, the division bench of the High Court, while setting aside the decision of the single bench, said that mid-day meal workers are not government employees. The court had clarified that employees appointed under any scheme of the Central or State Government do not come under the definition of government employee.

The appointment of part-time water carrier was challenged before the single bench of the High Court.

It was argued that the mother of the appointed candidate is a mid-day meal worker. For this reason, five marks could not be given to a candidate for the post of part-time water carrier if he belonged to the family of a government employee. While canceling the appointment of respondent Gaurav Thakur, the single bench had ruled that the mid-day meal worker is a government employee.

Gaurav Thakur had contested the decision to deny him five marks in the advertisement for the part-time water carrier position, arguing that he should be entitled to those marks. The matter was brought before a division bench.

The division bench, in overturning the single bench's decision, did not classify mid-day meal workers as government employees. This specific determination by the division bench was then contested by Prem Singh in an appeal brought before the Supreme Court.

The Top Court in its judgement has endorsed the decision of the Himachal High Court, which clarified the status of mid-day meal employees.