Gujarat High Court
Ramanbhai Chunabhai Waghela vs The State Of Gujarat on 25 August, 2025
Author: Vaibhavi D. Nanavati
Bench: Vaibhavi D. Nanavati
NEUTRAL CITATION
C/SCA/10771/2024 ORDER DATED: 25/08/2025
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
R/SPECIAL CIVIL APPLICATION NO. 10771 of 2024
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RAMANBHAI CHUNABHAI WAGHELA
Versus
THE STATE OF GUJARAT & ORS.
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Appearance:
DHRUVI K DESAI(8459) for the Petitioner(s) No. 1
MS TANUSHREE SHRIMAL, AGP for the Respondent(s) No. 1,2,3
NOTICE SERVED for the Respondent(s) No. 4
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CORAM:HONOURABLE MS. JUSTICE VAIBHAVI D. NANAVATI
Date : 25/08/2025
ORAL ORDER
1. Heard Ms. Dhruvi K. Desai, the learned advocate appearing for the petitioner and Ms. Tanushree Shrimal, the learned AGP appearing for the respondents.
2. By way of present petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India the petitioner herein has challenged the impugned order dated 4.3.2024 passed by the respondent No.4 herein Annexure-A to the petition, wherein the respondent No.4 herein denied extending benefit of Government Circular dated 16.7.2019 to the petitioner herein having arrived at finding of fact that the petitioner herein worked for four hours till the order was Page 1 of 5 Uploaded by K.K. SAIYED(HC00169) on Tue Aug 26 2025 Downloaded on : Tue Aug 26 22:08:45 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/10771/2024 ORDER DATED: 25/08/2025 undefined passed on 4.3.2024, however the petitioner did not figure amongst those who had approached the High Court by preferring the Special Civil Application No.7462 of 2012 and allied matters on 21.12.2018 and Letters Patent Appeal No.1155 of 2019 dated 9.5.2019 wherein the benefit of Government Circular issued by the Finance Department dated 16.7.2019 for grant of minimum of pay- scale with effect from 1.1.2019 was granted upon certain conditions to those petitioners only.
3. Ms. Dhruvi K. Desai, the learned advocate appearing for the petitioner relied on the Government Circular dated 16.7.2019 duly produced at Annexure-B (page-11) and submitted that the competent authority has committed an error in declining the benefit of Government Circular dated 16.7.2019 in light of the fact that the petitioner herein worked for four hours which forms part of the impugned order dated 4.3.2024 that the petitioner was not a part of the proceedings before the High Court and in allied matters could not have been reason to deny such benefit of Government Circular dated 16.7.2019 to the petition.
3.1 It is submitted that aforesaid issue has attained finality by Page 2 of 5 Uploaded by K.K. SAIYED(HC00169) on Tue Aug 26 2025 Downloaded on : Tue Aug 26 22:08:45 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/10771/2024 ORDER DATED: 25/08/2025 undefined judgment rendered by Coordinate Bench in the Special Civil Application No.6852 of 2020 and allied matter dated 19.7.2022 reported in 2022 (0) AIJEL-HC-244233 in the case of Hasmukhbhai Chimanlal Tapodhan vs. State of Gujarat, the directions issued in the said group of petitions were modified in the Letters Patent Appeal No.724 of 2023 and allied matters dated 11.8.2023 reported in 2023 (0) AIJEL-HC-247611 in the case of State of Gujarat vs. Haresh Arjanbhai Parmar challenging the said judgment and order whereby the Hon'ble Division Bench modified the order passed by the Coordinate Bench dated 19.7.2022 observing that the issue with regard applicability of Government Circular dated 16.7.2019 with regard to part-time employee working for less than four hours was kept open for examination.
4. Having heard the learned advocates appearing for the respective parties, in the case of hand, the petitioner herein is denied the benefit of Government Circular dated 16.7.2019 for grant of minimum pay-scale wherein out of eight categories, one of the category is with regard to part-timer who is working for four hours or more. The petitioner is denied the benefit on the ground that the petitioner was not part of the Special Civil Application Page 3 of 5 Uploaded by K.K. SAIYED(HC00169) on Tue Aug 26 2025 Downloaded on : Tue Aug 26 22:08:45 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/10771/2024 ORDER DATED: 25/08/2025 undefined No.6852 of 2020 and allied matters and Letters Patent Appeal No.724 of 2023 and allied matters, as referred hereinabove.
5. In the opinion of this Court, the case of the petitioner ought not to have been brushed aside on such ground without considering the petitoiner's case on its own merit whether the petitioner herein put in four hours of work or more. This is a fit case to exercise extraordinary jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution of India. In view thereof, the impugned order dated 4.3.2024 passed by the respondent No.4 is quashed and set aside with direction to verify whether the petitioner worked for four hours or more per day before the petitioner retired. This Court deems it fit to give the following directions :-
(a) In case the petitioner herein is found to have worked for four hours, then the respondent Nos.2 to 4 to verify the said fact within a period two weeks from the receipt of this order and thereafter shall forward the proposal to respondent No.1, who shall decide the same within a period of four weeks and ensure that appropriate payment of differential amount is disbursed within a period of two weeks thereafter.
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NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/10771/2024 ORDER DATED: 25/08/2025 undefined
6. With the aforesaid direction, the present petition is allowed. Liberty is reserved in favour of the petitioner to revive the present petition in case of difficulty.
7. Liberty is reserved in favour of the petitioner to revive the present petition upon filing of the note with the Registry.
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