Gujarat High Court
Association Of Class Iii Employees ... vs State Of Gujarat on 23 January, 2024
NEUTRAL CITATION
C/SCA/15143/2021 ORDER DATED: 23/01/2024
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
R/SPECIAL CIVIL APPLICATION NO. 15143 of 2021
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ASSOCIATION OF CLASS III EMPLOYEES THROUGH PRESIDENT
Versus
STATE OF GUJARAT
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Appearance:
SWAPNESHWAR GOUTAM(9051) for the Petitioner(s) No. 1
MS HETAL PATEL, AGP for the Respondent(s) No. 1
RULE SERVED for the Respondent(s) No. 2,3,4
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CORAM:HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE ANIRUDDHA P. MAYEE
Date : 23/01/2024
ORAL ORDER
1. Present Special Civil Application is filed praying for
following reliefs:-
(a) Your lordship may be please to issue writ of mandamus or in
nature mandamus or another appropriate writ, order or
direction to forthwith pay the interest at rate of 12% as
directed by this order and judgment dated 02.05.2016 in
Special Civil Application/7686/2006 and allied matters from
the date of their entitlement; further to pay interest at an
appropriate rate for nonpayment of interest and consequential
revision accordingly;
(b) Be please to declare that action of respondents in nonpaying
the interest for delay payment as per para 6 of the order and
judgment dated 02.05.2016 in Special Civil
Application/7686/2006 and allied matters confirmed by the
order and judgment dated 21.02.2018 in LPA/39/2017 is bad
and law, and arbitrary action;
(c) Pending the petition be please to direct the respondents to
forthwith release interest, and submit the compliance report
before this Hon'ble Court;
(d) Such other and further relief as may be fit, just and proper in
the facts and circumstances of the case.
(e) Be please to award cost of this petition.
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C/SCA/15143/2021 ORDER DATED: 23/01/2024
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2. Learned counsel for the petitioner contends that by order
dated 2.5.2016 in Special Civil Application No.7686 of 2006 and
other connected matters, this Court has allowed the writ
petitions and directed difference of amount to be paid along
with interest @ 12% per annum till its realization from the day it
became due. Relevant portion reads thus:
"For the foregoing reasons, all the petitions are hereby
allowed. The order dated 7th October, 2005 passed by the
Joint Director (Establishment) in the office of Commissioner of
Midday Meals and Schools, Gandhinagar is quashed and set
aside. The respondents are directed to pay to the petitioners
the pay scale of Rs.5,000-Rs.8,000 from the date of their
promotion to the post of Head Clerk. The difference amount
shall be paid from the the day it became due with interest at
the rate of 12% per annum till realisation. Rule is made
absolute to the extent indicated above. No order as to costs.
Direct Service is permitted."
3. Said order came to be impugned before the Division Bench
of this Court by way of Letters Patent Appeal No.39 of 2017
whereby the said order came to be upheld. Accordingly, by
Government Resolution dated 31.1.2019, State Government
directed payment of such difference of amount to the concerned
employees and directed that office of the Commissioner of
School shall take appropriate steps in that regard. The arrears
with respect to difference in the amount came to be paid to the
concerned employees, however interest thereon @ 12% as
directed by this Court was not paid.
4. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that they had
preferred a contempt petition before this Court being Misc. Civil
Application No.737 of 2018 wherein it was directed that
petitioner is to pursue remedy in accordance with law. He
submits that therefore present Special Civil Application is filed.
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C/SCA/15143/2021 ORDER DATED: 23/01/2024
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5. Learned Assistant Government Pleader Ms. Hetal Patel
submits that petitioner Association has not given a list of
employees to whom interest is to be paid. She submits that
though difference of amount has been paid by way of arrears
from the date due, it is still not clear how many employees are
to be awarded interest. She submits under instruction that if list
of 265 employees who are eligible for payment of interest is
given by the petitioner to the respondent No.2, interest of
payment shall be made at the earliest.
6. It is not in dispute that this Court had directed payment of
12% interest earlier on the amount due and same has not been
paid in respect of 265 employees.
7. In view of the above, the petitioner shall forward the list of
265 employees who are yet to be paid interest on the amount
due which has already been paid to them within a period of ONE
WEEK, in any case before 31.01.2024. On receipt of such list,
respondent No.2 shall process the same and make payment of
interest to such 265 employees within a period FOUR WEEKS,
in any case before 29.02.2024.
8. It is taken notice by this Court that order directing arrears
of amount due as well as rate of interest was granted on
2.5.2016 which came to be confirmed by learned Division Bench
of this Court on 21.2.2018. Thereafter, a period of 6 years has
passed, however the petitioners have been denied benefit of
interest. It is made clear that if interest as awarded is not paid
by 29.02.2024, then the additional amount of interest which will
be incurred by the State Government shall be recovered from
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C/SCA/15143/2021 ORDER DATED: 23/01/2024
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the salary of the concerned officer(s) after fixing responsibility
for the delay.
9. With aforesaid directions, present petition stands
DISPOSED OF. Rule is made absolute to the aforesaid extent.
Direct Service is permitted.
Sd/-
(ANIRUDDHA P. MAYEE, J.)
OMKAR
