Reshmi Bhattacharya vs The State Of West Bengal & Ors
2024 Latest Caselaw 5011 Cal

Calcutta High Court (Appellete Side)

Reshmi Bhattacharya vs The State Of West Bengal & Ors on 26 September, 2024

Author: Jay Sengupta

Bench: Jay Sengupta

                          HIGH COURT AT CALCUTTA

                     CONSTITUTIONAL WRIT JURISDICTION

Present:

THE HON'BLE JUSTICE JAY SENGUPTA



                              WPA 22711 of 2024


                               Reshmi Bhattacharya
                                         Versus
                       The State of West Bengal & Ors.




For the petitioner               :        Ms. Debjani Sengupta
                                          Ms. Koyel Bag


For the State                   :         Mr. Supriyo Chattopadhyay
                                          Ms. Sayantanee Bhattacharjee


Heard on                            :     26.09.2024

Judgment on                          :    26.09.2024




JAY SENGUPTA, J:


                 This is an application, inter alia, praying for release of

            House Rent Allowance, current and arrears, in favour of the

            petitioner.
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     Affidavit of service filed on behalf of the petitioner is taken

on record.


     Learned counsel appearing on behalf of the petitioner

submits as follows. The petitioner is an approved Headmistress

at Ichapore Girls' High School (H.S.). The husband of the

petitioner being an employee of a private company is receiving

House Rent Allowance (HRA) as a separate engagement. The

District Inspector of Schools (S.E.), Barrackpore, North 24

Parganas,    relying   on   the    Memorandum    of   the   Finance

Department (Audit Branch), Government of West Bengal bearing

No.5839-F(P) dated July, 09, 2012 and the Corrigendum

Memorandum        thereto       bearing   No.8012-F(p2)/FA/O/2m/

206/17(N.B.) dated December 27, 2018, stopped the payment of

HRA to the petitioner. A Coordinate Bench of this Court by the

judgment dated March 16, 2021 passed in WPA 1389 of 2018

(Mousumi Biswas & Ors. State of West Bengal & Ors.) has

quashed the aforementioned memorandum of 2018. An appeal

being MAT 1023 of 2021 (The State of West Bengal & Ors. vs.

Mita Majumder & Ors.) against the said judgment and order of

the said Coordinate Bench is pending. But, no order of stay has

been passed in the said appeal. Relying on this judgment, relief

has been granted to a similarly circumstanced Assistant

Teacher by an order dated 21.05.2024 passed in WPA 14006 of
                           3




2024. In view of the same, the petitioner would be entitled to full

HRA along with interest on the arrears.


     Learned counsel appearing on behalf of the State denies

the allegations made in the writ petition and submits that if, at

all, any relief is granted to the petitioner, the same has to be

subject to the decision of the appeal being MAT 1023 of 2021.


      It appears that the above-referred memorandum of 2018

were quashed by a Coordinate Bench of this Court. However, an

appeal is pending over the issue. But, no stay has been granted

in the said appeal.


     Relying on the said decision, another Coordinate Bench of

this Court has granted appropriate relief in favour of similarly

circumstanced Teacher.


     In the present facts which are quite similar, I find no

reason to take a different view.


     Therefore,   the   concerned   respondent    authorities   are

directed to release the HRA, both current and arrear in favour of

the petitioner, the arrear thereof be paid to the petitioner with

interest @ 6% per annum from the date on which it became

payable till the date of payment. Such payment shall be made

within a period of six weeks from the date of communication of

this order.

It is, however, made clear that the payment of HRA in

terms of this order is subject to the result of the above referred

pending appeal.

Accordingly, the writ petition is disposed of.

As affidavits were not called for, allegations contained in

the writ petition are deemed not to have been admitted.

Urgent photostat certified copy of this order may be

supplied to the parties expeditiously, if applied for.

(Jay Sengupta, J)

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