Antony Dominic, J. The applicants in OA No.531/08, who are also the applicants in RA No.44/10, are the petitioners herein.
2. Petitioners are Statistical Assistants who are employed in the different departments in the Union Territory of Lakshadweep. Their claim is for scale of pay of Statistical Assistants of Statistical Subordinate Service in the various departments of the Government of India, who are getting their pay based on the recommendation of the Central Pay Commission. It appears that when pay was revised in the Government of India based on the 6th Pay Commission Report, the respondents herein also issued orders giving the benefit of pay revision to the employees of the Lakshadweep administration as well.
3. However, that was objected by the Nodal Ministry of the Government of India and thereupon orders were issued by the Lakshadweep administration cancelling the benefit of pay revision given. This was challenged before the Tribunal in OA No.349/03, which was disposed of by the Tribunal by its order dated 8/12/2006 directing the Government of India to reconsider the matter. Accordingly, the Ministry of Finance, Government of India reconsidered the claim and issued orders holding that the applicants were ineligible for the benefit of pay revision which was implemented in the subordinate service of the Government of India.
4. This led to the filing of OA No.531/08. The OA was disposed of by the Tribunal by order dated 5th of April, 2010 upholding the order passed by the Ministry of Finance, Government of India. However, in so far as the issue of recovery of the amounts already paid is concerned, it was ordered that the same shall be kept in abeyance till the Government of India takes a final decision on the subject matter.
5. On passing of the said order, the applicants herein sought review of the order by filing RA No.44/10, a copy of which is Ext.P8 in this OP. In the review petition, they relied on Annexures RA2, RA3, RA4 and RA6 and they contend that the benefit of revised pay, claimed by them and rejected by Government of India, was being paid to their counter parts in the other Union Territories under the Government of India. However, the Tribunal rejected the review application by Ext.P2 order dated 21st October, 2011 on the ground that the application was not maintainable within the limited scope of a review application. It is in these circumstances, this OP has been filed challenging Exts.P1 and P2 orders.
6. We heard the learned counsel for the petitioners, learned standing counsel appearing for respondents 1 to 3 and 6 and Assistant Solicitor General appearing for respondents 4 and 5.
7. Thus, from what is stated above, it is evident that while the claim of the petitioners for revised scale at par with their counter parts in the Statistical Subordinate Service of the Government of India was rejected by the Tribunal on merits, their review application (RA No.44/10) was rejected by the Tribunal by Ext.P2 order only on technical grounds and that too without examining the contentions on merits.
8. Reading of Ext.P8, the review application shows that it is the case of the petitioners that they came into possession of the documents relied on by them in the review application only subsequent to the passing of Ext.P1 order disposing of the OA and that despite due diligence, they could not trace out those documents during the pendency of the OA. Prima facie, there was nothing before the Tribunal to have rejected that contention and in such a situation, we feel that ends of justice require that the review application should have been considered by the Tribunal on merits. In that view of the matter, we cannot uphold Ext.P2 order dismissing RA No.44/10 in OA No.531/08.
9. We, therefore, dispose of this OP setting aside Ext.P2 order dismissing RA No.44/10 in OA No.531/08 and directing the Tribunal to reconsider the said review application on merits with notice to the parties and also affording the respondents therein an opportunity to file their objections in the matter.
OP is disposed of accordingly.
Rp //True Copy// PA to Judge Sd/-
ANTONY DOMINIC JUDGE Sd/-
ANIL K. NARENDRAN JUDGE