HC: If date of increment of a Government Servant falls due on the day following superannuation on completion of one year of service, the same may be considered for benefit of notional increment [Read Judgment]

The Division Bench of the Bombay High Court consisting of Justices A.S. Chandurkar and Smt. M.S. Jawalkar opined that when the date of increment of a Government Servant falls due on the day following superannuation on completion of one full year of service, the said service may be considered for benefit of notional increment, purely for the purpose of pensionary benefits and not for any other purpose.

Facts

All the petitioners are retired/superannuated employees of the Zilla Parishad (respondent No.4) and were holding different posts, but they all retired on 30^th June in different years. They are beneficiaries of 6th Pay Commission Recommendations made applicable vide Rule 10 of the Maharashtra Civil Services (Revised Pay) Rules, 2009 (“Rules of 2009”). They were denied annual increment, which was due and payable, though they have completed one full year of service but have retired on 30^th June. By this petition, the petitioners are claiming annual increment for having completed one year of service and for the revision of their pay, pension, and consequential benefits accordingly.

Contentions Made

Appellant: Payment of increment is a statutory formality but the entitlement and eligibility, therefore, is completion of one year of service i.e., 365 days of service, prior to that date. As per Rule 10 of the Rules of 2009, the annual increment is due and payable on 1^st July of every year. The petitioners stood retired on 30^th June in different years, but they have completed their one year service on the day of their retirement. But only because they were not in service on 1st July, they are declined benefits of the said annual increment. Consequently, their pay, pension and other retiral benefits are fixed on a disadvantages position.

Respondent: In view of Rule 10 they are not entitled as they are not in service on 1^st July of respective years.

 Observations of the Court

The Bench observed that:

“The Hon’ble Madras High Court in similar set of facts in a case had held that when the date of increment of a Government Servant falls due on the day following superannuation on completion of one full year of service, the said service may be considered for benefit of notional increment, purely for the purpose of pensionary benefits and not for any other purpose. In the present matter, the petitioners have completed one full year service on 30^th June of their respective years of retirement, but the increment fell due on 1^st July, the date of which they were not in service. Thus, what is important in the present matter, the petitioners have completed one full year service on 30^th June of the respective years of retirement, however they were denied the benefit of the increment that fell due on 1^st July, just because on the date of the increment falling due, they were not in service.”

“Thus, all the petitioners though fulfil those criteria of entitlement their service up to 30^th June ought to be considered for grant of benefit of notional increment if they are eligible otherwise.”

Judgment

The writ petition was allowed, and the respondent No. 4 were to take all necessary steps for granting notional annual increment to the petitioners, who would be entitled for all consequential benefits accordingly.

Case Name: Pandurang Vithobaji Dhumne & Ors vs State of Maharashtra & Ors 

Citation:  WRIT PETITION NO. 5864 OF 2019

Bench: Justice A.S. Chandurkar, Justice Smt. M.S. Jawalkar

Decided on: 2^nd March 2022

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