Requirement of reasoned speaking orders for discontinuing long service

The State cannot arbitrarily discontinue or refuse to extend the engagement of long-serving temporary employees who have satisfactorily discharged public functions for over a decade without passing a reasoned speaking order supported by cogent justifications. Any sudden departure from a long-standing administrative practice of continuous annual renewals, which frustrates the legitimate expectations of employees, must be justified by clear, non-arbitrary reasons. Abruptly treating long-serving workers as surplus or undesirable overnight without recording valid administrative grounds constitutes an arbitrary executive action that fails constitutional scrutiny under Article 14. (Bhola Nath v. The State of Jharkhand | 2026 INSC 99)