STATE OF ORISSA . vs PRABHAWATI PADHIHARI — C.A. No. 796/2008

Case Summary: State of Orissa v. Prabhawati Padhihari (C.A. No. 796/2008) The Supreme Court allowed the State of Orissa's appeal and set aside the High Court's order directing approval of Prabhawati Padhihari's appointment as a permanent Lecturer in Education with grant-in-aid benefits. The Court held that her post did not meet the statutory eligibility criteria under the Orissa Grant-in-Aid Order 1994, which required posts to exist for three years before June 1, 1994. The Court rejected her argument that she deserved equal treatment based on similarly-situated persons wrongly granted benefits, finding that equality cannot be claimed through "negative equality" to replicate illegalities. However, the Court clarified that the State may still consider her case if she subsequently becomes eligible for relief. This case analysis is maintained by casestatus.in based on publicly available court records.