Srinagar, May 12 -- Srinagar- The High Court of J&K and Ladakh on Tuesday underlined that regularization or permanent absorption cannot be claimed as a matter of right outside the constitutional scheme governing public employment.

A bench of Justice Sanjay Parihar made the observations while dismissing a plea by a group of seasonal labourers seeking parity with certain workers who had earlier been granted the status of permanent casual labourers in the Irrigation Department.

"It is trite law that equality under Article 14 of the Constitution postulates positive equality and not negative equality. Merely because some benefit may have been extended in favour of another set of employees, the same by itself does not confer an enforceable ri...