Court No. - 33
Case :- WRIT - A No. - 13470 of 2020 Petitioner :- Mohan Lal And Another Respondent :- State Of U.P. And 4 Others Counsel for Petitioner :- Ranjeet Kumar Mishra Counsel for Respondent :- C.S.C.
Hon'ble Ashwani Kumar Mishra,J.
Petitioner no. 1 claims to be working since the year 1987 whereas petitioner no. 2 since 1985 in the forest department of the State. Their grievance is that even minimum of pay scale is not accorded to them by the concerned authorities. It is contended that petitioners have been working continuously and are entitled to be regularised and be paid the minimum of pay scale but despite expiry of more than three decades, the authority has not examined such issue.
Reliance is placed upon a judgment of Hon'ble Supreme Court in Civil Appeal No. 10956 of 2018 (Sabha Shanker Dube Vs. Divisional Forest Officer and others) to submit that the denial of minimum of pay scale, in the facts of the present case clearly is an unconstitutional act as it amounts to begar and thus violation of Article 23 of the Constitution of India.
Learned Standing Counsel submits that the petitioner's grievance would be got examined by the competent authority, in accordance with law.
In the event petitioner is working since last three decades, the respondents would not be justified in denying payment of minimum of pay scale to him in view of the law laid down by Hon'ble Supreme court in State of Punjab and others Vs. Jagjit Singh and others (2017) 1 SCC 148 as also in the case of Sabha Shanker Dube (supra), the petitioners are entitled to be paid at the minimum of the pay scale.
Considering the above, this petition stands disposed of directing the respondent no. 4 to examine petitioner's claim for payment for minimum pay scale, in accordance with law, within a period of four months from the date of presentation of copy of this order keeping in view the observations made by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the above cases. Liberty stands reserved to the petitioner to make a fresh comprehensive representation annexing all materials in support of his claim alongwith copy of this order.
Order Date :- 8.1.2021 n.u.