THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE DAMA SESHADRI NAIDU WRIT PETITION No.11446 of 2014 Date: 16.04.2014 Between :
S. Khader Shariff and another .. Petitioners and The Government of Andhra Pradesh, Education (UE-I) Department, Rep. by its Principal Secretary, Secretariat Buildings, Hyderabad and two others .. Respondents THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE DAMA SESHADRI NAIDU WRIT PETITION No.11446 of 2014 ORAL ORDER:
Heard the learned counsel for the petitioners and the learned Standing Counsel for the respondent University, apart from perusing the record.
Since the issue lies in a narrow compass, the Writ Petition is disposed of at the admission stage itself.
The facts relevant for the purpose of disposing the present Writ Petition are that the petitioners were appointed on 24.09.1992 and 17.01.1996 respectively as drivers in the respondent University. Later, on 09.06.1994, the Government issued proceedings permitting the University to extend the benefit of Heavy Vehicle Pay Scales to the drivers possessing heavy driving vehicle licence irrespective of the vehicle they were driving. Accordingly, the petitioners have also been extended the benefit. In course of time, through proceedings dated 01.12.2005, the petitioners were regularly appointed and absorbed into the services of the respondent University.
The grievance of the petitioners is that though they have been regularly working against the substantive vacancies, they have not been given the benefit of Revised Pay Scales of 2010. On this count, the learned counsel for the petitioners has contended that all other employees of the University were extended the benefit either by the University on its own or in the face of judicial directives by this Court in different writ petitions. Illustratively, the learned counsel has brought to the notice of this Court the interim directions dated 26.04.2012 in W.P.No.12541 of 2012, wherein this Court directed the respondent University to consider the case of the petitioners therein to have the said benefit extended to them. The learned counsel has also stated that in compliance with the direction of this Court, the University did extend the benefit of Revised Pay Scales, 2010 to those employees, who are the petitioners in W.P.No.12541 of 2012.
The learned counsel for the petitioner has also brought to the notice of this Court the orders dated 01.08.2000 in W.P.No.16060 of 2000 which in fact was filed by the second petitioner herein. That writ petition was filed seeking extension of the benefit of Revised Pay Scales of 1999. Indeed, this Court issued an interim direction that the benefit should be extended, and accordingly, the benefit was extended to the second petitioner. The learned counsel has also stated that since the petitioners have not been given the benefit of Revised Pay Scales, 2010, the petitioners also made representation on 29.10.2012 and another on 01.07.2013, which have not been disposed of as yet.
On the other hand, the learned Standing Counsel for the respondent University has submitted that the issue of the petitioners’ status as employees in the respondent University has been sub judice in W.P.No.743 of 2011 and that any benefit has to be extended shall be subject to the out come of the said writ petition.
Be that as it may, the record reveals that the petitioners had all along been extended the benefit of Revised Pay Scales upto the year 2005 when the last pay revision took place. Now also, all other employees of the University are stated to have been extended the benefit and this has not been seriously controverted by the learned Standing Counsel for the respondent University. A dispute may have been pending before this Court concerning the status of the petitioners, yet in the face of the earlier extension of the benefit to the petitioners, in the present instance there cannot be any discriminatory treatment meted out to the petitioners.
Accordingly, to meet the ends of justice, the present Writ Petition is disposed of with a direction to the respondent University to consider the representations of the petitioners dated 29.10.2012 and 01.07.2013 objectively and pass appropriate orders on the issue of extending of the benefit of Revised Pay Scales, 2010, as expeditiously as possible, at any rate, within a period of six weeks from the date of receipt of a copy of this order.
With the above observations, the writ petition stands disposed of. There shall be no order as to costs. As a sequel, the miscellaneous petitions, if any, pending in this writ petition, shall stand disposed of as infructuous.
DAMA SESHADRI NAIDU, J Date: 16.04.2014
va