Vindhyachal Pathak & Anr. vs State Of ...
2021 Latest Caselaw 4463 ALL

HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT ALLAHABAD, LUCKNOW BENCH
 
 

?Court No. - 20
 

 
Case :- SERVICE SINGLE No. - 7432 of 2021
 

 
Petitioner :- Vindhyachal Pathak & Anr.
 
Respondent :- State Of U.P.Thru.Prin.Secy./Addl.Chief Secy.Home/Jail & Ors
 
Counsel for Petitioner :- Laxmi Kant Pathak,Jyotindra Prakash Pathak
 
Counsel for Respondent :- C.S.C.
 

 
Hon'ble Chandra Dhari Singh,J. 

Heard learned counsel for the petitioners and Sri Ran Vijay Singh, learned Additional Chief Standing Counsel for the State-respondents.

By means of this petition the petitioner has assailed the order dated 31.12.2020 by which the respondent no.4 has refix the pay scale and grade pay of the petitioners. The petitioners also challenged the recovery orders dated 15.06.2020 and 25.01.2021.

Learned counsel for the petitioner has referred the dictum of Hon'ble Apex Court in the case of State of Punjab and others vs. Rafiq Masih, (2015) 4 SCC 334. Vide para 18 Hon'ble Apex Court has held that recovery from the salary of Class III and IV employees may not be made even if excess amount is paid without any fault on the part of the employee.

In the present case the benefit of pay scale has been extended to the petitioners by the Department itself, without any representation / mis-representation on the part of the petitioners, therefore, the petitioners may not be subjected to the recovery proceedings. Learned counsel for the petitioners has further submitted that the petitioners have already been retired. Learned counsel for the petitioner has further submitted that even no show cause notice or explanation has been issued to the petitioners when they were in service, therefore, the impugned order is in violation of principles of natural justice also.

Learned Additional Chief Standing Counsel could not dispute the aforesaid submission of learned counsel for the petitioners, however, he tried to justify the impugned action.

Therefore, in the light of para 18 of the judgment of Hon'ble Apex Court in re: Rafiq Masih (supra) and also in view of the fact that no opportunity of hearing has been extended to the petitioner, the impugned order dated 31.12.2020 is hereby quashed and the opposite parties are directed not to make any recovery from the pension of the petitioners and the petitioners be paid their pension prior to passing of the impugned order dated 31.12.2020.

Accordingly, the writ petition is allowed.

Order Date :- 23.3.2021

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