IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT HYDERABAD FOR THE STATE OF TELANGANA AND THE STATE OF ANDHRA PRADESH WEDNESDAY THIS THE SEVENTEENTH DAY OF SEPTEMBER TWO THOUSAND AND FOURTEEN PRESENT THE HON'BLE SRI JUSTICE R.KANTHA RAO WRIT PETITION No.27674 of 2014 Between:
Mohammad Khalid Khan . PETITIONER And The Singareni Collieries Company Limited, Rep.by its General Manager (P) Yellandu Post, Khammam District . RESPONDENT The Court made the following:
THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE R.KANTHA RAO WRIT PETITION No.27674 of 2014
ORDER:
This writ petition is filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India seeking a Writ of Mandamus, declaring the action of the respondent in continuing the attachment of the salary of the petitioner as illegal, arbitrary and consequently direct the respondent to follow the provisions of Section 60 of Code of Civil Procedure.
I have heard the learned counsel appearing for the petitioner and the learned counsel appearing for the respondent.
The petitioner is working as Security Guard in the respondent company and is getting salary of Rs.29,954/- after deductions. The petitioner’s wife filed a maintenance case vide PLS No.8/2012 whereunder an amount of Rs.4,000/- was ordered to be attached and was directed to be deducted from out of the petitioner’s salary. While so, there are some other money decrees which were passed against the petitioner whereunder the attachment of salary warrants were issued. The grievance of the petitioner is that the respondent company had been attaching his salary simultaneously in respect of all the decrees passed against him. Resultantly, the petitioner states that he is getting zero salary. The petitioner issued a legal notice to the respondent on 19.08.2014 requesting not to resort to execute all the salary attachments warrants simultaneously, but the respondent company did not heed his request.
According to the petitioner, the procedure adopted by the respondent company in attaching his entire salary simultaneously in respect of all decrees passed against him is illegal and the respondent company has to follow the procedure laid down in Section 60 of the Code of Civil Procedure.
The relevant provisions in Code of Civil Procedure i.e. Section 60 (i) & (ia) reads as follows:
“Sec.60: Property liable to attachment and sale in execution of decree: ………… Provided that the following properties shall not be liable to such attachment or sale, namely:--
(a) to (h)……….
(i) Salary to to the extent of [the first (one thousand rupees) and two-thirds of the remainder] [in execution of any decree other than a decree for maintenance]:
[Provided that where any part of such portion of the salary as is liable to attachment has been under attachment, whether continuously or intermittently, for a total period of twenty-four months, such portion shall be exempt from attachment until the expiry of a further period of twelve months, and, where such attachment has been made in execution of one and the same decree, shall, after the attachment has continued for a total period of twenty-four months, be finally exempt from attachment in execution of that decree] (ia) one-third of the salary in execution of any decree for maintenance;
Obviously, the procedure adopted by the respondent company in the present case is not in accordance with Section 60 of the Code of Civil Procedure even though several attachment of salary warrants were issued against the petitioner and were sent to the respondent company for deducting amounts from the salary of the petitioner. The respondent is under duty to follow the procedure laid down in Section 60 of the Code of Civil Procedure.
For the foregoing reasons, the respondent is directed to follow the procedure laid down in Section 60 of Code of Civil Procedure in deducting the amounts from the salary of the petitioner pursuant to the attachment of salary warrants received against the petitioner.
The Writ Petition is accordingly disposed of. No order as to costs.
Pending miscellaneous petitions, if any, shall stand closed in consequence.
R.KANTHA RAO,J Date: 17.09.2014 Dsr Note:
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