Allahabad High Court
Smt. Manju Rani Verma vs State Of U.P. Thru. Addl. Chief Secy. ... on 25 September, 2023
Author: Manish Mathur
Bench: Manish Mathur
HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT ALLAHABAD, LUCKNOW BENCH ?Neutral Citation No. - 2023:AHC-LKO:61926 Court No. - 20 Case :- WRIT - A No. - 7160 of 2023 Petitioner :- Smt. Manju Rani Verma Respondent :- State Of U.P. Thru. Addl. Chief Secy. Deptt. Technical Eductaion, Govt. U.P. Lucknow And 3 Others Counsel for Petitioner :- Shrawan Kumar Verma Counsel for Respondent :- C.S.C. Hon'ble Manish Mathur,J.
1. Heard Mr. H.G.S. Parihar, Senior Advocate assisted by Mr. Shrawan Kumar Verma, learned counsel for petitioner and learned State Counsel for opposite parties.
2. Petition has been filed challenging orders dated 04.08.2023 28.07.2023 and 30.03.2021 whereby post-retiral benefits due to petitioner has been withheld on account of recovery being effected.
3. The petition is being adjudicated at the admission stage itself with consent of learned counsel for the parties.
4. It has been submitted that by means of impugned order, it has been indicated that petitioner's increment due after 14 years of satisfactory service was incorrectly provided to petitioner. Impugned order also indicates certain discrepancies in petitioner's service book and therefore directions have been issued for passing appropriate orders which clearly indicate recovery to be effected from pensionary benefits of petitioner. It has been submitted that prior to passing of impugned orders, no opportunity of hearing was provided to petitioner since no show cause notice was ever received by her. It has also been submitted that Government Order dated 30.03.2021 even otherwise is inapplicable with regard to petitioner.
5. Learned State Counsel however has refuted the submissions advanced by learned counsel for petitioner with submission that there is no order requiring recovery from retiral benefits of petitioner.
6. Upon consideration of submissions advanced by learned counsel for petitioner and perusal of material on record, it is quite evident that impugned orders have been passed recording the fact of alleged incorrect fixation of pay scale of petitioner earlier and directing recovery to be effected from pensionary benefits of petitioner but it is also evident that impugned orders are completely silent with regard to issuance of notice, providing opportunity of hearing consideration of petitioner's reply to aforesaid grounds. The impugned orders are clearly ex parte in nature and therefore impugned orders dated 28.07.2023 and 04.08.2023 are quashed by issuance of a writ in the nature of Certiorari granting liberty to opposite parties to pass fresh orders but only after affording opportunity of hearing to petitioner taking into consideration judgment of Hon'ble the Supreme Court in Rafiq Masih v. State of Punjab reported in (2015) 4 SCC 334.
7. Opposite parties shall take a decision with regard to post-retiral benefits of petitioner within a period of six weeks from date a certified copy of this order is produced before the concerned authority, i.e. opposite party no.2, Director, Technical Education U.P., Kanpur, Camp Office Lucknow.
8. Consequently, the writ petition succeeds and is allowed. There shall be no order as to costs.
Order Date :- 25.9.2023 kvg/-