Rajasthan High Court - Jodhpur
Heera Lal Mali vs State & Ors on 6 March, 2018
Author: Arun Bhansali
Bench: Arun Bhansali
HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE FOR RAJASTHAN AT
JODHPUR
S.B. Civil Writ Petition No. 7942 / 2015
Heera Lal Mali s/o Shri Deva Mali by caste Mali, aged 46 years, r/o
Rebari ka Gada, District Udaipur (Raj.)
----Petitioner
Versus
1. State of Rajasthan through the Secretary, Department of
Mines and Geology, Secretariat, Jaipur (Rajasthan).
2. The Director, Directorate of Mines & Geology, Department of
Mines and Geology, Udaipur (Rajasthan).
3. Deputy Director, Directorate of Mines & Geology, Department
of Mines and Geology, Udaipur (Rajasthan).
----Respondents
_____________________________________________________
For Petitioner(s) : Mr. M.S.Godara
For Respondent(s) : Ms. Suman Porwal, Dy.G.C.
_____________________________________________________
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE ARUN BHANSALI
Order 06/03/2018 This writ petition has been filed by the petitioner aggrieved against the order dated 26/8/2013 (Annex.5) passed by the respondents, whereby, the representation made by the petitioner seeking pay scale of Rs.775-940 has been rejected.
The petitioner was appointed under the Work-charged Rules and after completing three years of service, he was granted semi- permanent status in the year 1989. Whereafter, by order dated 28/2/1994 the State Government took a decision to absorb the work-charged employees as regular employee in a phased manner, whereafter, the petitioner along with other employees was declared regular and it was also indicated that the employees would be entitled to salary and other benefits in terms of (2 of 4) Rajasthan Service Rules, 1951 ('the RSR''). Another order dated 28/3/1995 was issued by the Deputy Secretary to the Government, Department of Mines, indicating that all employees engaged under the Work-charged Rules/order and who have rendered two years of continuous and satisfactory services shall be converted into regular employees w.e.f. 1/1/1995 and would be brought under the purview of RSR.
The petitioner claimed the pay scale of Rs.775-1025 on the basis of pay scale given to regular Lab Boy, which was not accepted, therefore, he filed S.B.Civil Writ Petition No. 9059/2011, which was disposed of with liberty to the petitioner to file a detailed representation raising all the grievances and the respondents were directed to decide the same.
Pursuant to the order of this Court, the petitioner filed a detailed representation, which was decided by the impugned order dated 26/8/2013 (Annex.5) inter alia with the following observations:
"vihykFkhZ ds Kkiu ij iw.kZ fopkj fd;kA Jh ghjk yky ekyh] yscckW; gksdj odZpktZ fu;fer deZpkjh gSa tcfd vU; yScckW; fu;fer in ij dk;Zjr gSaA ''kklu ds i= dzekad &i&4¼8½ [kku @ xzqi &1@87 fnukad 07-03-2001 ds vUrxZr foRr foHkkx dh fVIi.kh bl izdkj gSa fd dk;Z izHkkfjr deZpkjh;ksa ds osrueku fu;eksa ds vuqlkj yscckW; ds in dk osrueku 750&940 gh gSaA vr+% yscckW; ds in ij dk;Zjr dk;Z izHkkfjr deZpkfj;ksa dk osrueku 775&940 nsus dk iz'u gh ugha mBrk A Jh ghjkyky ekyh dks le; le; ij iqujhfZ{kr osrueku blh vuq:i fu/kkZfjr fd;k x;kA ,slh fLFkfr esa Jh ghjkyky ekyh yscckW; tks fd odZpktZ lsok dk deZpkjh gksus ds mijkUr Hkh p;fur osrueku 9] 18 ds ifjykHk iznku dj fn;s x;s A pwfd''kklu ds mDr i= fnukad 07-03-2001 ds rgr bUgsa fu;fer jkT; deZpkjh yscckW; ds fu/kkZfjr osrueku 775&940 ns; ugha gSaA ,slh fLFkfr esa budk vH;kosnu Lohdkj ;ksX; ugha gksdj vLohd`r fd;k tkrk gSaA"
It is submitted by learned counsel for the petitioner that the (3 of 4) respondents were not justified in rejecting the case of the petitioner by observing that the pay scale of Work-charged employees for the post of Lab Boy was Rs.750-940 and he was not entitled to grant of pay scale of Rs.775-1025. It is further submitted that once the respondents declared the petitioner as regular employee and entitled to pay and other benefits under the RSR, there was no occasion for the respondents to deny the benefit of pay scale of Lab Boy and the grant of pay scale, which was subsequently revised from time to time, as a Work-charged Lab Boy is ex facie illegal.
It was prayed that the order impugned be quashed and respondents be directed to grant the pay scale of Rs.775-1025 to the petitioner with all consequential revisions etc. Learned counsel for the respondents supported the order impugned. It was submitted that the services of the petitioner along with other Work-charged employees were governed by the Mines & Geology Department Work Charge Employees (Service Condition) Rules, 1975 ('the Rules, 1975') and not by the RSR and as the post of Lab Boy under the Work-charged cadre carries the pay scale of Rs.750-940, therefore, the petitioner was not entitled to pay scale of Rs. 775-1025.
I have considered the submissions made by learned counsel for the parties and have perused the material available on record.
A bare look at the entire material indicates that though the petitioner was initially employed as Work-charged employee, he was declared as regular employee along with several others and it (4 of 4) was specially indicated that he will be entitled to salary and other benefits under the RSR.
The plea raised by the respondents that the petitioner was declared as 'regular Work-charged employee' is ex facie incorrect inasmuch as order dated 28/3/1995 (Annex.4) is explicit and indicates that the Work-charged employees were declared as regular and would be entitled to pay and other benefits under the RSR, therefore, the said plea raised in this regard cannot be countenanced.
The decision on the petitioner's representation vide order dated 26/8/2013 (Annex.5) indicating that as the petitioner is only a regular Work-charged Lab Boy, the pay scale granted to him was appropriate is also apparently incorrect as the order does not take into consideration the order dated 28/3/1995 (Annex.4).
In view of the above, the order dated 26/8/2013 (Annex.5) passed by the respondents cannot be sustained.
Consequently, the writ petition filed by the petitioner is allowed, the order dated 26/8/2013 (Annex.5) is quashed and set aside, the petitioner is entitled to pay scale of Rs.775-1025 with all consequences flowing from the said pay scale including the revised pay scales etc. The needful be done by the respondents within a period of three months from the date the certified copy of this order is placed before them.
(ARUN BHANSALI)J. Baweja-169