Calcutta High Court (Appellete Side)
Sumit Kumar Sen vs The State Of West Bengal & Ors on 4 April, 2023
04.04.2023
Item No.12
Court No.6.
S. De
M.A.T. 92 of 2023
with
I.A. No. CAN 1 of 2023
Sumit Kumar Sen.
Vs
The State of West Bengal & Ors.
Mr. Soumya Majumder,
Ms. Sanjukta Dutta,
...for the appellant.
Mr. Swapan Kr. Mazumder,
Mr. Saptarshi Mazumder,
...for the Nabadwip Municipality.
Mr. Jahar Lal De,
Mr. Rudranil De,
...for the State.
By consent of the parties the appeal and the
connected application are taken up together for
hearing.
The appellant retired from the service of
Nabadwip Municipality on March 31, 2019. With the
grievance that his retiral benefits were wrongfully
withheld, he had approached a learned single Judge of
this Court by filing WPA No.6091 of 2020. That writ
petition was disposed of by directing the State
respondents to disburse the pensionary benefits of the
appellant/writ petitioner within six weeks from the
date of the order.
Pension Payment Order was issued in favour of
the appellant herein. However, according to the
appellant, although he is entitled to the benefit of pay
revision under Revision of Pay and Allowances 2019
(ROPA 2019), his pensionary benefits have not been
calculated taking into consideration the pay revision
under ROPA 2019. With this grievance, he
approached the learned single Judge in the present
round of litigation. By the judgment and order
impugned in this appeal, the learned single Judge
directed the Chairman of the Nabadwip Municipality to
consider the appellant's entitlement to the benefit of
ROPA 2019 and if the Chairman found the appellant
to be so entitled, then to release the applicable benefits
in his favour.
Being aggrieved, the writ petitioner has come up
by way of this appeal.
Mr. Mazumder, learned advocate appearing for
the appellant/writ petitioner says that since the
Municipality has denied the benefit under ROPA 2019
to the appellant, it would be an exercise in futility to
have the matter heard before the Chairman of the
Municipality. Obviously, the Chairman will not
deviate from the earlier decision of the Municipality.
We have heard learned counsel for the parties.
Learned advocate for the Municipality, on
instructions says that the appellant is not entitled to
the benefit under ROPA 2019. The PPO was issued in
November 2020 after taking into account all benefits
that the appellant is entitled to.
Mr. Mazumder, learned advocate appearing for
the appellant has drawn our attention to a
Government of West Bengal Resolution dated
December 26, 2019 (Page 16 of affidavit-in-opposition
of the Municipality). The material portion of the
Resolution is set out hereunder :-
"In Finance Department Resolution
No.8071-F(P) dated the 27th November,
2015 the Government constituted a Pay
Commission to examine the present
structure of pay and conditions of
service of the employees of
Municipalities. Municipal Corporations,
Notified Area authorities and Industrial
Township Authorities after taking into
account the prevailing pay structure
under the Central Government, Public
Sector Undertakings, other State
Governments etc., and to furnish
recommendations for changes which
may be desirable and feasible. The
Commission has submitted its report on
the 13th September, 2019.
After careful consideration of the
recommendations of the Sixth Pay
Commission, the Governor has been
pleased to decide that the structure of
pay and other conditions of service in
respect of the employees of the
Municipalities including Notified Area
Authorities and Industrial Township
Authorities will be as set out in the
following paragraphs.
1. Date of effect - The revised pay
structure under this resolution shall be
deemed to have come into force on the
first day of January 2016 notionally
with actual financial effect from
01.01.2020."
Admittedly, the appellant superannuated on
March 31, 2019. The effect of the aforesaid resolution,
in our considered opinion, is that the pensionary
benefits of the appellant will have to be calculated by
allowing notional revision of scale of pay of the
appellant under ROPA 2019. This is because the
revised pay structure under the resolution shall be
deemed to have come into force on January 1, 2016
and the appellant retired thereafter. No doubt that the
appellant will not be entitled to actual financial
benefit, in the sense that he will not be entitled to
arrears on the basis of the notional revision of scale of
pay. However, the respondents have erred in
calculating the appellant's pensionary benefits without
allowing for notional revision of his scale of pay under
ROPA 2019.
Accordingly, the order under appeal is set aside.
We direct the Municipality to follow the procedure
enumerated in Rules 3, 4 and 5 of the West Bengal
Employees (Death-Cum-Retirement Benefit) Rules,
2003 and calculate the applicable pensionary benefits
of the appellant after allowing for notional revision of
his scale of pay under ROPA 2019. Once the
procedure prescribed in Rules 3, 4 and 5 in 2003
Rules is completed and the relevant records are sent to
the Director of Pension, Provident Fund and Group
Insurance, which will be done within six weeks from
the date of communication of this order to the
concerned authority, the Director of Pension, Provident
Fund and Group Insurance shall issue fresh Pension
Payment Order within six weeks thereafter. Needless
to say that the actual disbursement of the benefits
under fresh PPO shall be made by the concerned
authority within four weeks of issuance of the Pension
Payment Order.
The applicable medical allowance and ad hoc
payment which the appellant may be entitled to shall
also be released in his favour within a period of eight
weeks from the date of communication of this order to
the concerned authority, after adjusting all payments
already made to the appellant.
Accordingly, MAT 92 of 2023 is disposed of
along with the application being I.A. No. CAN 1 of
2023.
Urgent certified photostat copy of this order, if
applied for, shall be given to the parties as
expeditiously as possible on compliance with all the
necessary formalities.
(Prasenjit Biswas, J.) (Arijit Banerjee, J.)
