Court Directs State to Grant Increments for Officiating as Joint Labour Commissioner, Citing Violation of Equality Clause
In a significant ruling, the Himachal Pradesh High Court has directed the State of Himachal Pradesh to grant increment benefits to Sansar Chand Awasthi, who served in officiating capacity as Joint Labour Commissioner, under Fundamental Rule 26. The court quashed the previous rejection of his claim and deemed the denial as violative of Article 14 of the Indian Constitution, which ensures equality before the law.
The petitioner, Mr. Sansar Chand Awasthi, had been appointed as Deputy Labour Commissioner in 1986 and served as Joint Labour Commissioner in various spells. Despite fulfilling the role for a total of 463 days, his claim for counting this period for increments was denied by the State on procedural grounds.
Presided over by Justice Jiya Lal Bhardwaj, the court highlighted that Rule 26 of the Fundamental Rules does not require continuous service for counting officiating periods in higher posts for increments in the lower post. The court observed that denying Mr. Awasthi the benefits granted to similarly situated employees, like Mr. Manoj Tomar, was unjust and contrary to the principles of equality.
Justice Bhardwaj noted that the respondents had previously extended similar benefits to another employee under comparable circumstances. The court rejected the State's defense that the petitioner was not appointed following the prescribed procedure, noting that the petitioner had already been paid the salary for the role of Joint Labour Commissioner during the pendency of the petition.
Furthermore, the court ordered that arrears be calculated from three years prior to the filing of the petition and paid within three months, with interest applicable at 6% per annum in case of delay.
This judgment reinforces the principles of equality and fair treatment in service law, setting a precedent for similar cases where employees are denied benefits due to procedural technicalities.
Bottom line:-
Service Law - Benefit of increments under F.R.26 for officiating service in a higher post must be granted, even if the service is performed in different spells and not continuously, provided the employee is similarly situated as others who were granted such benefits.
Statutory provision(s): Fundamental Rules (F.R.) Rule 26, Constitution of India, 1950 Article 14
Sansar Chand Awasthi v. State of H.P., (Himachal Pradesh) : Law Finder Doc id # 2907131
