Himachal Pradesh High Court
Sundru Devi vs State Of H.P. & Ors on 10 May, 2023
Author: Satyen Vaidya
Bench: Satyen Vaidya
IN THE HIGH COURT OF HIMACHAL PRADESH SHIMLA CWPOA No. 2500 of 2020.
Date of Decision :10.05.2023.
.
Sundru Devi ...Petitioner.
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ....Respondents.
Coram:
The Hon'ble Mr. Justice Satyen Vaidya, Judge.
Whether approved for reporting?1 For the Petitioner: Mr. Yudhvir Singh Thakur, Advocate.
For the Respondents/State: Mr. B.N. Sharma and Mr. H.S.Rawat, Additional Advocates General.
Satyen Vaidya, Judge (Oral).
Heard.
2. By way of instant petition, petitioner has prayed for following substantive relief:-
"1. That the impugned order dated 08.12.2015 (Annexure A-8) may be quashed and set aside and the respondents may be directed to grant work charge status to the applicant w.e.f.
1.1.2003 with all consequential benefits, 1 Whether reporters of the local papers may be allowed to see the judgment?::: Downloaded on - 11/05/2023 20:36:31 :::CIS
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keeping in view the judgment passed by the .
Hon'ble Court in the matter of Rakesh Kumar."
3. In the first instance, petitioner had approached this Court in the year 2011 by way of CWP No. 10480 of 2011 seeking benefit of work charge status on completion of eight years of continuous daily wage service. The petition was disposed of vide order dated 03.12.2011 with direction to the respondents to consider the case of the applicant and to take appropriate action in accordance with law. The Respondent rejected the claim of the petitioner on 08.12.2015.
4. A perusal of the impugned order dated 08.12.2015 reveals that the claim of the petitioner has been rejected solely on the ground that the Forest department did not have work charge establishment and hence the benefits as given in the case of Rakesh Kumar could not be extended to the petitioner.
5. The issue with respect to grant of work charge status on completion of continuous service of eight years on daily wage basis is no more res integra. A Division Bench of this Court in LPA No. 165 of 2021, titled as State of H.P. & Others vs. Surajmani and Anr., decided on 12th January, ::: Downloaded on - 11/05/2023 20:36:31 :::CIS ...3...
2023, has decided the issue by holding that the work charge .
status was available to daily wage workmen who had completed eight years of continuous service. Relevant paragraphs No. 54 and 55 of the aforesaid decision reads as under:-
"54. It was also noticed by the Division Bench that new Scheme was introduced on 9.6.2006 and on completionof 8 years of service, the employees were liable to be granted work charge status. The Writ petitions filed by Rakesh Kumar and others were allowed and the Special Leave Petition filed against the order passed by the Division Bench of this Court, was dismissed vide order dated 15.1.2015. Thereafter, in Ashwani Kumar's case supra, this Court upheld the decision passed by the Tribunal, whereby, the daily wage employees had been ordered to be conferred work charge status on completion of 8 years of service. The finding of the Tribunal that work charge establishment was not a prerequisite for conferment of work charge status was upheld by this Court in Ashwani Kumar's case and the decision given by this Court in Ashwani Kumar's case was upheld by the Hon'ble Supreme Court. Thereafter, many cases have been decided by this Court,l basing reliance on the decision given by this Court in Ashwani Kumar's case and the judgments passed by this Court, have, admittedly, been implemented by the State.::: Downloaded on - 11/05/2023 20:36:31 :::CIS
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55. Hence, the State, which is .
expected to act like a model employer and should have rather granted the same relief, as claimed by the respondents and other petitioners being similarly situated qua the daily wagers/petitioners who had approached this Court and decisions have already been passed in their favour, but has rather now argued that the decision given by this Court in Ashwani Kumar's case supra did not lay down any law and the observations made therein were per incuriam. This leads to the inference that the State/Department has rather adopted a pick and choose Policy. Once, the judgment in Ashwani Kumar's case supra has been implemented and has attained finality, then the respondents/petitioners who are similarly situated, are liable to be granted the same relief. So far as the observation made by this Court in Rakesh Kumar's case supra to the effect that the question of conferment of work charge status did not arise in case the establishment ceases to be a work charge establishment, is concerned,the said observation had been made without there being any issue raised in this regard. The decision given in Rakesh Kumar's case has been admittedly implemented and the petitioners have been granted work charge status on their completion of 8 years of service on daily wage basis. Thus, in that case there was no issue as to whether the establishment was a work charge one or not. Thus, in the present cases, the issue involved already stands settled vide judgment given by this ::: Downloaded on - 11/05/2023 20:36:31 :::CIS ...5...
Court in Ashwani Kumar's case supra, which has .
been followed by this Court time and again and, admittedly, many writ petitions have been decided in terms thereof and the said decisions have been duly implemented. Hence, the State cannot be permitted to take a pick and choose Policy. In the case of Rakesh Kumar supra, this Court had categorically held that the question of delay in the present cases is not to be taken for consideration and can be considered for denial of interest on the eligible benefits and not the benefits as such.
Hence, the State cannot be permitted to re-agitate the issue which as already been settled by this Court. Rather, the State should itself grant the relief to the daily wagers by conferring work charge status on them after completion of 8 years of service in terms of their Policies and decisions of this Court."
6. Thus, no exception can be made in the case of petitioner and she is also entitled to the benefit of work charge status from the date when she completed eight years of continuous service on daily wage basis. Accordingly, the petition is allowed. The respondents are directed to treat the petitioner having acquired work charge status immediately on completion of eight years of service as daily wage workman and to grant all consequential benefits to her within a period of eight weeks from today. It is, however, clarified ::: Downloaded on - 11/05/2023 20:36:31 :::CIS ...6...
that the financial benefits shall be available to the petitioner .
for three years immediately preceding the date when she approached this Court in the first instance, i.e. in the year 2011. The petition stands disposed of in the above terms, so also, the pending applications, if any.
10th May, 2023.
r to (Satyen Vaidya)
Judge
(jai)
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