Brij Pal Vs State of Punjab and Others

The present writ petition has b een filed under Article 226/2 2 7 of the Con s titution of India with a prayer f o r issuance of an appropriate w r it or order in the nature of certiorari for qu a shing the impugned reply dat e d 05.03.2021 ( Annexure P-13) issued by resp o ndent No.3 to the extent that t h e claim of p e titioner for grant of benefit of p ension scheme has been denie d . Further fo r issuance of a writ in the na t ure of mandamus directing t h e respondent s to count the services render e d by petitioner as work char g e employee w .e.f. 3.8.1997 till the date of re g ularization as qualifying servi c e

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PUNEET CHAWLA 2025.11.29 16:32 I attest to the accuracy and integrity of this document

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for the pur p ose of pension and allow the petitioner to receive pensiona r y benefits, b y counting his service w.e.f. 3.8.1977 to 31.10.2018 as qualifyi n g service, as per old pension scheme appli c able prior to 1.1.2004 and al s o make the payment of gratuity and leave encashment amounting t o Rs.9,44,33 0 /- with 12% interest per annu m from the due date along with all consequent i al benefits.

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Learned counsel for the petitioner, at this stage, submits that t h e case of the p etitioner is squarely covered b y the judgment rendered by a Full Bench of t h is Court in A.S. Randhawa Supdg. Engineer (Retd.) vs. State o f Punjab 1998 (1) SCT 343 . Learned cou n sel further submits that all h i s retiral due s were not released immediat e ly upon his retirement and t h e respondent s are obligated to release his ret i ral dues within two months aft e r the date of his retirement. As such, the del a y in releasing all his retiral du e s entitles the petitioner for grant of interest on delayed payment in terms o f terms of th e judgment rendered in A.S. Randhawa (supra).

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3. Learned counsel further submits that the case of the petition e r for countin g of past service and other ben e fits is covered by the judgmen t s rendered b y this Court in Harbans Lal v. State of Punjab, CWP No.2371 of 2010 and State of Haryana and others v. Jai Bhagwan, LPA No.1892 of 2019 .

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Learned counsel for the resp o ndent(s) are not in a position t o controvert t he fact that the controversy i n the present petition is alrea d y adjudicate d by this Court in Harbans Lal (supra) and A.S. Randhaw a (supra).

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I have heard learned counsel for the parties and perused t h e record with their able assistance.

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In compliance with the order dated 20.03.2025 passed by th i s Court in CWP No. 7727 of 2025 titled Paramjit Kaur vs. State of Punja b and others , the Government of Punjab has constituted an Empower e d Committee vide letter dated 16.04.20 2 5. The said Committee w a s established under the Punjab Dispute Resolution & Litigation Policy, 202 0 , which aim s to encourage the swift resol u tion of disputes, reduce futu r e litigation, a n d address the considerable bac k log faced by the Courts.

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Learned counsel for the peti t ioner submits that he would b e satisfied in case the issue involved in the p resent petition is considered a n d decided by the Empowered Committee constituted under the Punjab Dispu t e Resolution & Litigation Policy, 2020 (here i nafter 'Punjab Litigation Polic y ') which was n otified vide notification dated 2 5.06.2020.

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Learned counsel for respon d ents submit that they have n o objection in case a direction is issued to the Empowered Committ e e constituted under the Punjab Litigation Po l icy for time-bound considerati o n

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and decisi o n of the issue involved in t h e present petition by passing a speaking o r der.

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In view of the above, the pre s ent petition is disposed of in t h e

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following t e rms:

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i. The Empowered Comm i ttee constituted under the Punj a b Litigation Policy is hereby directed to treat the prese n t writ petition as a com p rehensive representation and t o n consider and adjudicate upon the issue raised herein. I the alternative, the petit i oner shall be at liberty to sub m it a detailed representatio n setting out his claim within a period of two weeks from the date of receipt of a certified copy of this or d er. ii. The Committee shall p a ss a reasoned and speaking ord e r in terms of Harbans Lal (supra) and A.S. Randhaw a (supra) , after granting a n opportunity of personal heari n g to the petitioner, within a period of four months from t h e date of receipt of a cer t ified copy of this order, or fro m the date of receipt of th e petitioner's representation, a s the case may be. Furthe r , the decision taken thereof sh a ll be conveyed to the pe t itioner. Needless to say, if t h e petitioner is found entit l ed to the relief sought, the sa m e shall be granted to him f orthwith.