Himachal Pradesh High Court Rules on Pay Fixation Error, Halts Recovery from Employee

Court affirms correction of junior employee's pay but quashes recovery of excess payment due to administrative error.

In a significant judgment, the Himachal Pradesh High Court, presided over by Justice Jyotsna Rewal Dua, addressed a contentious issue of pay fixation between government employees. The case, Chaman v. State of H.P., revolved around an office order that led to a junior employee, Chaman, receiving a higher pay than his senior due to an incorrect exercise of the Revised Pay Rules, 2022. This resulted in an office order to correct the pay disparity and recover the excess payment made to Chaman. 

The petitioner, Chaman, was initially appointed as a Clerk on a contractual basis in 2011 and regularized in 2016. The issue arose with the implementation of the Himachal Pradesh Civil Services (Revised Pay) Rules, 2022, which allowed a 15% pay enhancement option. Chaman opted for this enhancement from the date of his placement as Junior Assistant, which was incorrect as per the rules, leading to a higher pay than his senior, Respondent No. 4.

The court examined the application of Rule 6(4) of the Revised Pay Rules, 2022, and the office instructions dated 10.02.2022, which clearly stated that a junior employee's pay should not exceed that of their immediate senior. Justice Dua noted that the error in pay fixation was due to the incorrect exercise of the option by the petitioner, which was subsequently acted upon by the respondents.

While the court upheld the correction of pay to align with the senior employee, it quashed the recovery of excess payment, recognizing that the mistake was not attributable to Chaman. The court highlighted that the excess payment resulted from an administrative error and not from any wrongdoing by the petitioner.

This judgment underscores the judiciary's role in ensuring fairness in administrative decisions, particularly when the error is not the fault of the employee. The ruling provides a precedent for similar cases where administrative errors have led to financial adjustments impacting government employees.

Bottom Line:

Service Law - Pay fixation of junior employee higher than immediate senior due to incorrect exercise of option for Revised Pay Rules - Correction permissible under office instructions, but recovery of excess payment due to incorrect fixation not justified if error not caused by the employee.

Statutory provision(s): Himachal Pradesh Civil Services (Revised Pay) Rules, 2022, Rule 6(4), Office Instructions dated 10.02.2022.

Chaman v. State of H.P., (Himachal Pradesh) : Law Finder Doc Id # 2801242