A.
Dear Client,
By accepting the terms of the appointment letter mentioning no post or designation, you make yourself liable to abide by the terms of the said appointment letter, even if it is temporary. But such terms of appointment letter can be challenged by invoking Section 27 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872, which states that an agreement/contract of employment will be illegal if it restrains someone from exercising a lawful profession/ trade/ business. As per the mandate of Section 27, any terms and conditions of an agreement that directly or indirectly compel the employee to serve the employer or put a restriction on them joining the competitor or other employer are not valid. An employer cannot stop or deprive an employee of his/her better career prospects, which will amount to the exploitation of one's career opportunity as well as livelihood and the infringement of fundamental rights guaranteed under Articles 16 and 21 of the Constitution of India. The employee or the probationer has the right to resign from the employment even if he has agreed to serve the employer for a specific period of time. In the case where the employer is able to prove that the employee is joining the competitor to disclose the trade secret, then the court may issue an injunction order restricting the employee from joining the competitor. Further, Section 73 of the Contract Act, 1872 makes provision for unliquidated damages (not stipulated in a contract), Section 74 deals with liquidated damages (stipulated in a contract) and no compensation is attracted for mere breach of contract u/s.73. 74 of the Act unless such breach resulted in an actual loss or damage to the opposite party. Moreover, withholding of F & F dues and the Original documents of an employee post resignation is considered an unfair labour practice. Given the provision of relevant laws, serving a legal notice to the Head of the College, you can file a civil suit before the Civil Court seeking appropriate relief in the matter. You can also escalate your grievance to the regulatory authority, UGC, for redressal. To streamline the stakeholders' grievance redressal mechanisms, UGC has merged its existing portals/ helplines except Anti Ragging Helpline and developed a new portal "UGC e-samadhan: A step forward: Service to Stake Holders" which would be a single Window system for all the stakeholders for registering their complaints/ grievances on the portal which would be available 24x7 with a click of the mouse. A toll-free No. 1800-111-656 will also be available on the UGC website 24x7 for lodging complaints by the stakeholders on any issue faced by them in a college or educational institute affiliated under any public or private university.
Posted On 01-Apr-2025
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