Retired District Judge sought enhanced emoluments as Law Officer of Travancore Devaswom Board after being promoted to Super Time Scale. Court noted the appointment was based on a contract specifying a fixed honorarium, excluding entitlement to enhanced scales.
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
PRESENT:
THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE T.R.RAMACHANDRAN NAIR & THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE B.KEMAL PASHA
SATURDAY, THE 5TH DAY OF OCTOBER 2013/13TH ASWINA, 1935
WP(C).No. 507 of 2007 (I)
PETITIONER(S):
RAJAPPAN ASARI G., RETIRED DISTRICT JUDGE, KRISHNA SURYA, KOTTIYODE ATTINGAL P.O., THIRUVANANTHAPURAM DISTRICT.
BY ADVS.SRI.GEORGE VARGHESE(PERUMPALLIKUTTIYIL) SRI.A.R.DILEEP SMT.KAVITHA GANGADHARAN
RESPONDENT(S):
1. STATE OF KERALA, REP. BY THE PRINCIPAL SECRETARY TO THE GOVT. GOVERNMENT SECRETARY, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM.
2. THE TRAVANCORE DEVASWOM BOARD, REP. BY ITS SECRETARY, BOARD BUILDING, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM.
R,R2 BY ADV. SRI.P.PARAMESWARAN NAIR, SC, TDB R,R2 BY ADV. SRI.C.VIJAYAN, SC, TDB R,R BY ADV. SRI.D.SREEKUMAR, SC, TDB R,R2 BY ADV. SRI.P.G.PARAMESWARA PANICKER (SR.) R,R2 BY ADV. SRI.P.GOPAL R BY GOVERNMENT PLEADER SRI. A. RANJITH.
THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING BEEN FINALLY HEARD ON 05-10-2013, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING:
W.P.(C) 507/2007
APPENDIX
PETITIONERS' EXTS.
EXT.P1 - A TRUE COPY OF THE ORDER OF APPOINTMENT DATED 25.10.2000 ISSUED BY THE 2ND RESPONDENT.
EXT.P2 - A TRUE COPY OF THE PROCEEDINGS NO.B141625/2002 DATED 1.9.2004 OF THIS COURT.
EXT.P3 - A TRUE COPY OF G.O.(MS)NO.157/2006/HOME DATED 30.8.2006 ISSUED BY THE 1ST RESPONDENT.
EXT.P4 - A TRUE COPY OF REPRESENTATION DTD.24.5.2006 SUBMITTED BY THE PETITIONER TO THE 2ND RESPONDENT.
EXT.P5 - A TRUE COPY OF THE ORDER NO.ROC 8442/00/EST (A) DTD.29.5.06 ISSUED BY THE 2ND RESPONDENT.
RESPONDENTS' EXTS.
EXT.R2(a) - TRUE COPY OF THE PROCEEDINGS ROC NO.8442/2000/EST(A) DTD.26.9.03 ISSUED BY THE TRAVANCORE DEVASWOM BOARD.
EXT.R2(b)TRUE COPY OF THE ROC NO.8442/2000/EST.(A) DTD. 18.11.03 ISSUED BY THE TRAVANCORE DEVASWOM BOARD.
// TRUE COPY //
P.S. TO JUDGE.
T.R. RAMACHANDRAN NAIR & B. KEMAL PASHA, JJ.
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W.P.(C) No.507 OF 2007
-------------------------------------------------------- Dated this the 5th day of October, 2013
J U D G M E N T
Kemal Pasha, J.
Through a contract of appointment, a retired District and Sessions Judge was appointed as the Law Officer of the Travancore Devaswom Board through Ext.P1 order of appointment dated 25.10.2010, for a period of three years. The appointment was as a result of the judicial intervention, vide order dated 20.10.2000 in C.M.P.No.38041 of 2000 in O.P.No.3821 of 1990 of this Court. According to the petitioner, the remuneration was fixed by taking into account the last drawn emoluments of the petitioner at the time of his
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retirement as Selection Grade District and Sessions Judge. The petitioner claims that a monthly honorarium of 16,000/- was fixed that was subject to revision, if₹ any, by the Hon'ble Supreme Court. The initial term of appointment for three years was extended by a further period of three years more by the Travancore Devaswom Board with the sanction of this Court.
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of Super Time Scale District Judge with effect from 15.3.1999 by this Court which has resulted in substantial enhancement of the last drawn emoluments of the petitioner. As the petitioner became afflicted with serious ailments which required continuous treatment, he requested the second respondent, Travancore Devaswom Board to relieve him from the post of Law Officer with effect from 31.5.2006 and further requested for the enhancement of his emoluments in tune with those fixed for the Super Time Scale District Judge. All his requests for such enhancement fell in deaf ears, and hence this writ petition.
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as Super Time Scale District Judge for the petitioner was not in the contemplation of anybody, as it was a subsequent creation by the orders of the Apex Court on the basis of the recommendations of the Shetty Commission. The argument is that when a right to get an enhanced emolument was conferred on the petitioner subsequently and when his last drawn emoluments were revised in the enhanced scale of pay applicable to the Supreme Time Scale District Judge, he was legitimately entitled to such emoluments for the period in which he served as Law Officer of the Travancore Devaswom Board. At the same time, Advocate Sri. P. Gopal appearing for the Travancore Devaswom Board has argued that the appointment of the petitioner as Law Officer of the Travancore Devaswom Board was purely on the basis of a contract, whereby the petitioner had offered to serve the Travancore Devaswom Board as its
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Law Officer on a monthly honorarium of 16,000/- + T.A.₹ and D.A. applicable to the Selection Grade District and Sessions Judge, of course, subject to the revision as per the decision of the Apex Court and therefore, the petitioner is not entitled to claim any enhanced emoluments applicable to a Super Time Scale District Judge.
“Sri.Rajappan Asari was present before the Board on 25.10.2000 and submitted the following terms and conditions for appointment as Law Officer of the Board.
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Under the circumstances, Sri.C.Rajappan Assari, retired District and Sessions Judge (Krishna Soorya, Kottiyode, Attingal) is appointed as Law Officer of the Board on the above terms and conditions, for a period of three years, with immediate effect. The Car KL01-E 6301 is allotted to the Law Officer for official use.”
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conditions for his appointment as Law Officer of the Board. The first condition clearly denotes that he had agreed for a monthly honorarium of 16,000/-. Along₹ with it, he had agreed for T.A. & D.A. applicable to the Selection Grade District Judge, subject to the revision as per the decision of the Apex Court. As regards the monthly honorarium, the amount was fixed as 16,000/-.₹ Along with the consolidated amount of 16,000/- as₹ monthly honorarium, he had agreed for T.A. and D.A applicable to the Selection Grade District Judge, subject of course, to the revision as per the decision of the Apex Court. Matters being so, it is evident that there was no contract even for the implementation of the scale of pay applicable to the Selection Grade District Judge; whereas, the contract was only for T.A. and D.A. alone applicable to the Selection Grade District Judge, over and above the fixed monthly honorarium of 16,000/-.₹
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Court shows that the petitioner was promoted as Super Time Scale District Judge with effect from 15.3.1999. It is true that a separate scale of pay and increment rate have been prescribed for the Super Time Scale District Judge, which is more than that of the Selection Grade District Judge. Advocate Sri. George Varghese Perummpallikuttyil has pointed out that Ext.R2(a) proceedings of the Travancore Devaswom Board issued on 26.9.2003 reveals that the said amount of honorarium was tentatively fixed at ₹16,000/- by considering the last drawn emoluments of the petitioner as 21,694 from which his pension fixed at 5,997/- was₹ ₹ deducted. In Ext.R2(a), it has been stated as follows:
“Later on the decision was rendered by the Hon'ble Supreme Court and has been implemented by making revision in the scale of pay of District Judges
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inclusive of Selection Grade District Judges. Accordingly his pay and allowances have been refixed as ₹30,774/- as on 31.7.2000. The monthly pension tentatively calculated on the basis of the revised pay, which may be received by him from the Treasury, will be 8,777/- Hence, he has requested to₹ enhance his remuneration to 21997/-₹ per mensem (ie, ₹30774-8777) from 28.10.2000 and to disburse the arrears of honorarium of 2,04,671/- due to him.”₹
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District Judges in the revised scale, the Travancore Devaswom Board ought to have accepted and implemented the scale of pay and allowances applicable to a Super Time Scale District Judge, to the petitioner.
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and also all the other attendant benefits to the petitioner, after forgetting the contractual rate of the agreed monthly honorarium. Even if the monthly honorarium of 16,000/- plus T.A. and D.A. applicable to₹ the Selection Grade District Judge is taken together and considered as scale of pay along with T.A. and D.A. applicable to the Selection Grade District Judges, the petitioner cannot claim anything more than that. At the most, the terms and conditions of the contractual appointment through Ext.P1 clearly reveals that the Travancore Devaswom Board wanted the service of the Law Officer who was ready to serve in the category as a Selection Grade District Judge. Even if the category of Super Time Scale District Judge was subsequently conferred on the petitioner by Ext.P2 proceedings of this Court, the petitioner cannot claim as a matter of right the scale of pay and other emoluments applicable to the
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Super Time Scale District Judge from the Travancore Devaswom Board, when he had agreed and accepted his appointment as Law Officer through Ext.P1 by agreeing to the monthly honorarium of 16,000/- + T.A. and D.A.₹ applicable to a Selection Grade District Judge. From all these, we are of the view that the claim of the petitioner fails and this petition is only to be dismissed.
In the result, this Writ Petition is dismissed.
Sd/- T.R. RAMACHANDRAN NAIR, JUDGE
Sd/- B. KEMAL PASHA, JUDGE
ul/[True copy]
P.S. to Judge
3 issues framed by the court
Whether a retired district judge appointed as Law Officer on a fixed honorarium is entitled to enhanced emoluments applicable to a higher judicial category acquired subsequently.
Whether the contractual terms of the appointment allow for revision of the basic honorarium to match the petitioner's revised scale of pay.
Whether the enhancement of emoluments and service conditions in the subordinate judiciary automatically applies to contractual appointments of Law Officers.
Rajappan Asari G.
State of Kerala, Rep. by the Principal Secretary to the Govt.
The Travancore Devaswom Board
T.R. Ramachandran Nair
B. Kemal Pasha
As recorded by the court registry
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