State appealed against a Single Judge order setting aside post-retirement re-fixation of pay of a work charged employee converted to the regular establishment. The Division Bench held no resolution permitted a lower scale on conversion and that equal duties cannot attract discriminatory pay, dismissing the appeal.
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA Letters Patent Appeal No.257 of 2022 In
Civil Writ Jurisdiction Case No.6028 of 2020
======================================================
... ... Appellant/s
Versus
Hirdayanand Tiwari S/o Late Dhanush Tiwari Resident of Village- Ashok Pakari, P.S.- Pipra, District- East Champaran.
... ... Respondent/s
====================================================== Appearance : For the Appellant/s : Mr. Ajit Kumar GA-9 Mr. Vikash Jha A.C. To G.A.9 For the Respondent/s : Mr.Satish Kumar Sinha, Advocate ====================================================== CORAM: HONOURABLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE and HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE PARTHA SARTHY CAV JUDGMENT (Per: HONOURABLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE)
Date : 03-09-2024
The State is aggrieved with the order of the learned Single Judge which declined to sustain the re-fixation of pay revision of the petitioner, effected while in service; attempted to be modified after retirement.
Patna High Court L.P.A No.257 of 2022 dt.03-09-2024 2/10
carrying a lesser pay scale than the other. The writ petitioner who was alleged to be entitled only to the lower scale of pay, was inadvertently fixed at a higher pay scale resulting in the revision also being carried out in the higher pay scale; argued the State. It was found in the impugned order that the State Government did not produce any material to show that the writ petitioner was initially appointed in the lower pay scale; while Annexure-1 relied on by the writ petitioner was an extract of the Service Register clearly indicating that he was appointed in the higher pay scale of Rs. 1200-1800 which was revised as Rs. 4000-6000. Relying on the Service Register, the learned Single Judge set aside the re-fixation and rejected the contention of the State that there were two establishments within the organization; the work charged establishment and the regular establishment.
Patna High Court L.P.A No.257 of 2022 dt.03-09-2024 3/10
available to the regularly employed Electricians. This was an anomaly which was rectified. There is no recovery of pay ordered by the Government and there would be only prospective revision of pension, making the modified pay fixation notional; so as to re-compute the last paid salary for the purpose of pension alone.
Patna High Court L.P.A No.257 of 2022 dt.03-09-2024 4/10
Hon’ble Supreme Court in State of Punjab & Ors Vs. Rafiq Masih (White Washer) reported in (2015) 4 SCC 334 , the learned Single by decision dated 08.03.2019 in CWJC No. 10325 of 2012 directed reconsideration of the re-fixation made, since there was no clarity as to the contention regarding work charged and regular establishment and how the petitioner who was in the work charged establishment was fixed with the higher pay scale. The fresh consideration was made by the impugned order in the year 2019, since the earlier writ petition was disposed of on 08.03.2019; which was after the retirement of the appellant/petitioner.
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Department of the Government of Bihar dated 17.10.2013. Reliance is placed on these documents by the learned Government Advocate to contend that the work charged employees who were transposed to the regular establishment, were to be continued without adding such posts into the cadre of the regular establishment; also abolishing it on the retirement of such employees. It is the contention that the above provision would also indicate that the work charged employees when converted into the regular establishment continued in the same pay scale.
Patna High Court L.P.A No.257 of 2022 dt.03-09-2024 6/10
referred by the learned Government Advocate, the translation of which is as follows:-
“(a) On converting the Work-charged employees into regular establishment, the respective posts of the Work-Charged establishment will be converted into regular establishment;
xxx
(c) On adjusting the Work-Charged employees in regular establishment, the amount provided in the ordinary unit for expenditure on their salary allowances will be transferred to the concerned budget head of the regular establishment.”
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establishment is not continued and hence the budgetary allocation remaining in the work charged establishment had to be transferred to the regular establishment.
“(a) On conversion of the workcharged empolyees to the regular establishment, the concerned posts of work charged establishment will be converted into that of regular establishment.
xxx
(c) After taking the work-charged employees to the regular establishment, the amount under the heads provisioned in the maintenance unit for expenditure on their salaries/allowances will be transferred to the related budgetary head of the regular establishment.”
Patna High Court L.P.A No.257 of 2022 dt.03-09-2024 8/10
employees, on conversion into regular establishment will be continued on the earlier scale or their original scales of pay available in the work charged establishment.
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appointed to a particular cadre, the source from which he was taken cannot be a reason to discriminate him from the other employees continuing in the very same cadre, who also have similar responsibilities and identical obligations.
Patna High Court L.P.A No.257 of 2022 dt.03-09-2024 10/10
regular establishment would get the higher pay scale; but the others who are allowed to continue in identical posts, which post will also stand abolished at the time of their retirement or severance from employment; would be treated differently from others; clearly making a case of discrimination. We do not think that the object of the various resolutions produced before us was to treat the work charged establishment employees differently after conversion into & regularization in the regular establishment.
(K. Vinod Chandran, CJ)
Partha Sarthy, J: I agree.
(Partha Sarthy, J)
ranjan/-
| AFR/NAFR | AFR |
|---|---|
| CAV DATE | NA |
| Uploading Date | 03.09.2024 |
| Transmission Date | NA |
2 issues framed by the court
Whether a work charged employee absorbed into the regular establishment can be re-fixed at a lower pay scale than regularly recruited employees in the same cadre.
Whether the State could modify the pay revision and recompute pension after the employee's retirement.
Colour shows how this judgement treated each authority
State of Punjab & Ors Vs. Rafiq Masih (White Washer)Referred¶25
(2015) 4 SCC 334 · Who else cites this
The State of Bihar through Principal Secretary, Finance Department
The Principal Secretary, Minor Irrigation Department, Bihar
The Engineer in Chief, Minor Irrigation Department, Bihar
The Co-ordinator-cum-Chief Engineer, Tube Well Project, Muzaffarpur
The Executive Engineer, Tube Well Division, Motihari
Hirdayanand Tiwari S/o Late Dhanush Tiwari
K. Vinod Chandran
Partha Sarthy
As recorded by the court registry
Judgements on the same questions, provisions and authorities, from every court
