Calcutta High Court (Appellete Side)
Sanjoy Kumar Bhowmik & Anr vs The Orissa Minerals Development ... on 13 June, 2019
Author: Amrita Sinha
Bench: Amrita Sinha
13.06.2019
Ct. No.24
Item No.04
pk.
WP No. 9324 (W) of 2019
Sanjoy Kumar Bhowmik & Anr.
-vs-
The Orissa Minerals Development Company Ltd. & Ors.
Mr. Arun Kumar Chowdhury for the petitioners
Mr. N. Srinivas,
Mr. J. Ahmed for the respondent nos. 1-2
The petitioners, two in number, are Ex-servicemen. Pursuant to an advertisement published by the Orissa Minerals Development Company Ltd on 13th May 2011 the petitioners applied for the post of Personal Staff Officer. The petitioners were appointed on 9th December 2011 by the Company.
The grievance of the petitioners is that being ex-servicemen, they are entitled to protection of their pay after their re-employment in any Government office. The petitioners raised grievances before the respondent authorities on regular basis for their pay protection.
The General Manager (Personnel) of the respondent-company vide an office order bearing Reference No. OMDC/HO/PERS/SNS/05/2014-II dated 28th May 2014 passed an order for pay fixation of the petitioners. The said office order categorically mentions that on examination of the grievances of the petitioners regarding their pay fixation on joining the respondent-company by the Grievance Committee the basic pay of the petitioners was examined in terms of the DOPT Office Memorandum dated 5th April 2010 and DPE Guidelines vide office Memorandum dated 14th December 2012. On compliance of the abovementioned memoranda, the pay of the petitioners was re-fixed from the date of their joining. The revised pay was paid to the petitioners from June 2015 till August 2016.
The petitioners submit that on and from September 2016 their pay has again been reduced without giving any reasons for such reduction. The petitioners served a legal notice upon the Managing Director of the respondent- company. On receipt of the legal notice, the company sent a further notice to the petitioners enquiring whether the legal notice was at all served with their consent or not. However, the legal notices of the petitioners have not been answered till date.
The learned counsel appearing on behalf of the respondent-company submits that the office order dated 28th May 2014 was issued by a person, who was not competent to issue the same. He submits that the petitioners are not entitled to any pay protection as the Company is not an undertaking of the Central Government and they are not bound by the CCS(RP) Rules 2008.
Be that as it may, it appears that the representations of the petitioners are yet to be answered by the respondent-company.
Without going into the issue, the instant writ petition is disposed of by directing the respondent no. 2 being the Managing Director of the Orissa Minerals Development Co. Ltd. to consider the representations made by the petitioners in accordance with the relevant rules and to pass a reasoned order after giving an opportunity of hearing to the petitioners within a period of four weeks from the date of communication of a copy of this order. The respondent no. 2 shall communicate the reasoned order to the petitioners within a fortnight thereafter.
It is made clear that this court has not gone into the merits of the case and all points are left open to be decided by the said respondent at the time of consideration of the prayer of the petitioners.
With the aforesaid observations the writ petition being No. WP 9324 (W) of 2019 is disposed of.
Urgent photostat certified copy of this order be supplied to the parties, if applied for, as early as possible.
(Amrita Sinha, J.)