Jharkhand High Court
The State Of Jharkhand vs Dr. Umeshwar Sharma on 22 December, 2025
Author: Rajesh Shankar
Bench: Rajesh Shankar
2025:JHHC:38514-DB
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JHARKHAND AT RANCHI
L.P.A No. 363 of 2025
1. The State of Jharkhand
2. The Principal Secretary, Department of Health, Medical Education
and Family Welfare, Government of Jharkhand, Ranchi
... ... Appellants
Versus
1. Dr. Umeshwar Sharma, retired District AYUSH Medical Officer,
Deoghar
2. The Additional Chief Secretary, Department of Planning-cum-
Finance, Government of Jharkhand, Ranchi
... ... Respondents
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CORAM: HON'BLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE RAJESH SHANKAR
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For the Appellants : Mr. Manish Kumar, Sr. SC-II
Mr. Ashwini Bhushan, AC to Sr. SC-II
For the Respondent No. 1: Mr. Krishna Shankar, Advocate
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Order No. 03 Dated: 22.12.2025 I.A. No. 5259 of 2025 For the reasons stated in the application, we find sufficient cause to condone the delay of 190 days that has crept up in filing the instant appeal.
2. Ordered accordingly.
3. The present interlocutory application stands disposed of. L.P.A No. 363 of 2025
4. We really wonder as to why the State has filed the instant appeal given the fact that the writ petitioner had approached the Writ Court for grant of the following reliefs:
(i) Quashing of the Memo No. 234(20) dated 28.07.2016 [Annexure-8/1] and subsequently Memo No. 481(20) dated 27.12.2018 [Annexure-11] passed by Department of Health, Medical Education and Family Welfare, Govt. of Jharkhand whereby the Department 1 2025:JHHC:38514-DB has rejected the claim of the petitioner for payment of Non-Practicing Allowance [hereinafter called the NPA] to petitioner from 26.05.1998 to March, 2000 without considering the facts that the Hon'ble Jharkhand High Court in W.P.(S) No. 2822/2004 and W.P.(S) No. 2894/2001 has directed the respondents to pay the NPA in accordance with notification issued by the State of Bihar vide notification No. 189(1) dated 26.05.1998.
(ii) For direction upon the respondents after quashing the Memo No. 234 dated 28.07.2016 and subsequently Memo No. 481(20) dated 27.12.2018 to pay the NPA from 26.05.1998 to March, 2000 to petitioner as per the direction of the Hon'ble Jharkhand High Court in W.P.(S) No. 2894/2001 [Dr. Bijay Narayan & Ors. Vs. State of Jharkhand] and W.P.(S) No. 2822/2004 [Dr. Jagannath Tripathi & Ors. Vs. State of Jharkhand] and as per the Memo No. 10(vidhi) dated 24.12.2003 issued by the Secretary, Department of Health, Medical Education and Family Welfare, Govt. of Jharkhand.
5. Learned counsel for the appellants banked upon letter no. 1178 dated 09.05.2001 issued by the Deputy Secretary, Finance Department, Government of Jharkhand, whereby a consensus decision has been taken by the State Government not to grant the Non-Practising Allowance (NPA) to the Government doctors, however, it would be noticed that this decision itself was to come into force w.e.f 01.03.2001, whereas the prayer of the writ petitioner (the respondent no. 1) for grant of NPA was w.e.f 26.05.1998 up to March, 2000 which was not at all covered by the aforesaid letter. In addition thereto, it needs to be observed that the doctors, who were similarly situated to that of the petitioner, had already been granted the benefits of NPA as is evident from the orders passed by this 2 2025:JHHC:38514-DB Court in W.P.(S) No. 2894 of 2001 [Dr. Bijay Narayan & Ors. Vs. State of Jharkhand] and W.P.(S) No. 2822 of 2004 [Dr. Jagannath Tripathi & Ors. Vs. State of Jharkhand]. Thus, even on the ground of parity given the fact that the judgments in the aforesaid two cases have attained finality, the writ petitioner (the respondent no. 1 herein) was required to be granted the NPA for the aforesaid period in view of the fact that the letter subsequently issued by the State Government on 09.05.2001 was not at all applicable to the case of the writ petitioner.
6. Applying the rule of parity as laid down by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of Kangra Central Cooperative Bank Pensioners Welfare Association Vs. State of Himachal Pradesh & Ors. reported in 2022 SCC OnLine SC 1031 and in the case of Om Prakash Banerjee Vs. State of West Bengal & Ors. reported in 2023 SCC OnLine 771, the learned Writ Court rightly held the writ petitioner to be entitled to the NPA for the period commencing from 26.05.1998 till 31.03.2000.
7. Thus, there is no infirmity in the impugned order dated 02.09.2024 passed by the Writ Court in W.P.(S) No. 606 of 2019.
8. Consequently, there is no merit in the instant appeal and the same is accordingly dismissed.
(Tarlok Singh Chauhan, C.J.) (Rajesh Shankar, J.) December 22, 2025 Manish/Ritesh 3