Nani Gopal Ghosh vs The Durgapur Projects Limited & ...
2022 Latest Caselaw 6016 Cal

29.08.2022            IN THE HIGH COURT AT CALCUTTA
   DL-13             CONSTITUTIONAL WRIT JURISDICTION
   (PP)                    APPELLATE SIDE

                           WPA 19258 of 2022

                          Nani Gopal Ghosh
                                 Vs.
                   The Durgapur Projects Limited & Ors.


                    Mr. Siddhartha Sarkar
                                               ....for the petitioner.

                    Mr. S. S. Koley
                                                         ....for DPL.


                   Affidavit of service filed in Court today is taken

             on record.

                   The petitioner was an employee in Durgapur

             Projects Limited (in short "DPL"), the respondent no.1.

The petitioner retired from service on 31st January,

2019. The petitioner on his retirement was entitled to

payment of gratuity and an amount on account of

leave salary aggregating to Rs.7,34,348/-. This figure is

not in dispute. The petitioner was paid this amount on

28th August, 2020. The date of payment is also not in

dispute. The petitioner says that there has been a

delay of about 18 months in making of the said sum of

Rs.7,34,348/- on account of gratuity and leave salary.

The petitioner, therefor, is entitled to interest for

delayed payment of gratuity as per the provisions of

Section 7(3A) of the Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972

(hereinafter referred to as the "said Act") and interest

on the same rate on leave salary since the same is part

of the retiral benefits.

The issues involved in the instant writ petition

are squarely covered by a recent judgment and order of

this Court dated 9th August, 2021 passed in WPA

11485 of 2021 (Kajal Pal v. The Durgapur Projects Ltd.

& Ors.). The recent Supreme Court judgment reported

in (2022) 4 SCC 627 (Dr. A. Selvaraj v. CBM College &

Ors.) also provides for payment of interest on retiral

dues if paid belatedly for no fault of the employee. The

same is the case over here. The consensus between the

parties as was in case of Kajal Pal (supra) is also there

in the instant case.

As such, this writ petition is disposed of on the

similar lines as in Kajal Pal (supra), which are as

follows:-

The respondent no.1 is directed to pay interest

to the writ petitioner at the rate of 6 per cent per

annum on Rs.7,34,348/- being the amount on account

of gratuity and leave salary calculated on and from 1st

February, 2019 till 28th August, 2020 within a period

of six months from the date of communication of a

photostat certified copy of this order and in default

statutory rate of 10 per cent as in case of gratuity will

be attracted on the entire amount from 1st February,

2019 till 28th August, 2020.

Nothing further remains to be adjudicated in

this writ petition. The same is disposed of accordingly

without any order as to costs.

Since I have not called for any affidavits,

allegations made in the writ petition are deemed to

have not been admitted by the respondents.

Urgent photostat certified copy of this order, if

applied for, be given to the parties, upon compliance of

necessary formalities.

(Arindam Mukherjee, J.)