Himachal Pradesh High Court
Cwp No.4507/2023 vs State Of H.P. & Ors on 15 September, 2023
Bench: Jyotsna Rewal Dua
IN THE HIGH COURT OF HIMACHAL PRADESH,
SHIMLA
CWP Nos. 4507 to 4509, 4511 to 4521, 5018,5072, 5926 to 5930,
5739, 5743, 6343 and 6444 of 2023
.
Decided on: 15.09.2023
1. CWP No.4507/2023
Sarita Sharma ...Petitioner
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ....Respondents.
2. CWP No.4508/2023
Sudesh Kumari ...Petitioner
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors.
r ....Respondents.
3. CWP No.4509/2023
Anju Kumari ...Petitioner
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ....Respondents.
4. CWP No.4511/2023
Kanta Devi ...Petitioner
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ....Respondents.
5. CWP No.4512/2023
Gayatri Devi ...Petitioner
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ....Respondents.
6. CWP No.4513/2023
Bidula Kumari ...Petitioner
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ....Respondents.
7. CWP No.4514/2023
Chander Kanta ...Petitioner
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ....Respondents.
8. CWP No.4515/2023
.
Pushp Lata ...Petitioner
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ....Respondents.
9. CWP No.4516/2023
Neema Kumari ...Petitioner
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ....Respondents.
10. CWP No.4517/2023
Krishna Devi ...Petitioner
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ....Respondents.
11. CWP No.4518/2023
Savitri Devi ...Petitioner
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ....Respondents.
12. CWP No.4519/2023
Suresh Kumari ...Petitioner
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ....Respondents.
13. CWP No.4520/2023
Tripta Devi ...Petitioner
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ....Respondents.
14. CWP No.4521/2023
Roshni Devi ...Petitioner
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ....Respondents.
15. CWP No.5018/2023
Manjula Thakur ...Petitioner
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ....Respondents.
.
16. CWP No.5072/2023
Sunita Devi ...Petitioner
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ....Respondents.
17. CWP No.5926/2023
Prem Lata Chauhan ...Petitioner
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ....Respondents.
18. CWP No.5927/2023
Sangeeta Malhotra ...Petitioner
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ....Respondents.
19. CWP No.5928/2023
Rajesh Bala ...Petitioner
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ....Respondents.
20. CWP No.5929/2023
Promila Devi ...Petitioner
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ....Respondents.
21. CWP No.5930/2023
Sushma Sharma ...Petitioner
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ....Respondents.
22. CWP No.5739/2023
Asha Kumari ...Petitioner
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ....Respondents.
23. CWP No.5743/2023
.
Chinta Devi ...Petitioner
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ....Respondents.
24. CWP No.6343/2023
Sita Devi ...Petitioner
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ....Respondents.
25. CWP No.6444/2023
Sneh Lata ...Petitioner
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ....Respondents.
...........................................................................................
Coram
Ms Justice Jyotsna Rewal Dua, Judge.
Whether approved for reporting?1
For the petitioners: Mr. Adarsh K. Vashista and Mr.
Lovneeesh Kanwar, Sr. Advocate
with Mr. Tek Chand, Advocate, in
the respective petitions.
For the respondents: Mr. Anup Rattan, Advocate General
with Mr. Rupinder Singh, Advocate
General, for the respondents/State.
Mr. Rangil Singh, Advocate, for the
respondents /Accountant General.
Jyotsna Rewal Dua , J
On the oral request made by learned counsel for the
petitioners, Accountant General (A&E) Himachal Pradesh, Shimla is
impleaded as respondent No.4 in the array of parties.
Whether reporters of the local papers may be allowed to see the judgment?
2. Mr. Rupinder Singh Thakur, learned Additional Advocate
General and Mr. Rangil Singh, learned counsel, has put in
.
appearance on behalf of respondents No.1 to 3 and 4, respectively.
3. The case set up by the petitioners in these petitions are
that they were engaged as Nursery Trained Teacher (NTT) in the
respondent-department. On 02.02.1999, respondent-State decided to
regularize the services of Nursery Trained Teacher (NTT) on
completion of 5 years of service instead of 10 years. Transferred
Application No.2828/2015 instituted by certain NTTs was decided by
the erstwhile H.P. Administrative Tribunal on 13.09.2018 directing the
respondents-State to regularize the services of the petitioners therein
on completion of 5 years of service. This decision was assailed by the
respondents-State by filing CWP No.3544/2019. The writ petition was
dismissed on 06.11.2020. The respondents-State thereafter set out to
implement the decision in question. Office order dated 03.03.2022
was issued. The petitioners have been extended the benefit of the
decision. Their services have been regularized with retrospective
effect from different dates in different years. Revised seniority
numbers have been issued to the petitioners. The petitioners now
stand retired from service on attaining the age of superannuation.
4. Petitioners' grievance in the instant petitions is that till
date the respondents have not released their due pension.
5. With similar prayer, CWP No.4986 of 2023 and other
connected matters (Savita Kumari Versus State of H.P. & Ors.)
.
were filed, in which following order was passed on 06.09.2023:-
"3. .................When the matters were taken up on 03.08.2023,
learned counsel for respondent No.4 i.e. Accountant General
(A&E) Shimla, H.P. pointed out certain procedural difficulties on
account of instructions of the Finance Department in releasing due
and admissible pension to the petitioners. For ironing out the
creases, Senior Officers of the concerned departments including
the Finance and Education Departments attended the hearing of
the case on 11.08.2023 and assured that all necessary action for
releasing due and admissible monetary benefits to the petitioners
would be taken by them. Following order was passed in the matter
on 17.08.2023:-
"On 16.08.2023, learned Additional Advocate
General had placed on record a copy of instruction memo
dated 14.08.2023 issued by Director of Elementary
Education inter alia stating as under:-
"In this context, it is submitted that the Finance
Department has conveyed its clarification sought by the
Accountant General (A&E), HP vide their letter
No.Fin(C)B(15)-21/2020-Loose dated 11.08.2023 to the
Deputy Accountant General (Pension) with request to
finalized pension cases of NTT Teachers.
It is further submitted that all the Deputy Directors
of Himachal Pradesh have also been directed vide letter
dated 14.08.2023 (Copy Enclosed) to submit all pension
cases pertaining to NTT Teachers to the O/o Accountant
General, HP as per the clarification of the Finance
Department and follow up these cases from the O/o
Accountant General, H.P."
2. The respondents/State had also placed on record a copy
of office letter dated 11.08.2023 from the Finance
Department addressed to the office of Deputy Accountant
General stating as under:-
"I am directed refer to your office letter no. Pen1/C/-1/
.
clarification/NTT/2023-21/528-29 dated 05.07.2023 on the
subject cited above and to say that the Finance
Department confirms that the following, advice had been
accorded/conveyed to the AD (Education Department) in
the matter of CWP No. 3544/2019 & COPCT No.
758/2020 titled as State of HP Vs. Surendra Sharma and
others, on 11th May, 2023.
"Examined in the Finance Regulations Department. The
CMM vide decision dated 20.12.2021 has already
approved to implement the Court decision dated
13.09.2018 of the erstwhile HPAT rendered in the TA No
2828/2015 & decision dated 6.11.2020 of the Hon'ble High
Court, rendered in CWP No. 3544/2019 in view of the
Government letter dated 2.2.1999. The Law Department
has also advised the A.D. to implement the court decisions
vide N-7 to N-13 of the AD's notes.
Hence, to settle issue, until otherwise the department has
grounds to contest the matter in the Hon'ble Apex Court,
the Finance Department agrees to grant consequential
benefits to the petitioners in aforesaid writ petitions as per
directions passed in the Court decision. However, non-
petitioners can be granted benefits on notional basis in
terms of Government letter dated 15.12.2011 read with
letter dated 7.1.2012.
It is requested that AG Office may finalize pension cases
of NTT as per above advice in accordance with orders of
Hon'ble High Court. The same has been conveyed by
Education Department, also to your goodself vide their
letter dated June 2023."
3. Learned counsel for respondent No.4 i.e. Accountant
General (A&E) Shimla submit that all necessary action at
the end of Accountant General's office including
sanctioning the PPOs as well as authorizing payment of
Pension & arrears of Pension shall be carried out within 10
days from today. The statement is taken note of.
4. Learned Deputy Advocate General submits that within a
.
week thereafter all monetary benefits due and admissible
to the petitioners including the pension/arrears etc. will be
credited in their respective bank accounts.
5. In light of above statements of learned counsel for the
respondents, list on 06.09.2023 to oversee the
compliance."
4. Today, when the matters were taken up, Learned counsel
appearing for respondent No.4 (A&E) Shimla, H.P. submitted
that the cases of all these petitioners are under process in the
office of Accountant General. Pension Pay Orders in cases of
individual petitioners, in these petitions shall be sanctioned,
prepared and dispatched within outer range of 2 weeks from
today. Pension Pay Orders of all these petitioners shall be
dispatched to the concerned Drawing and Disbursing Officer
(DDOs'), District Treasury Officers (DTOs') as well as the
petitioners latest by 25.09.2023. Their statements are taken on
record.
5. Since respondent No.4 has now not only undertaken to
sanction the PPO orders in favour of the petitioners but has
also assured that the same shall be dispatched to all concerned
quarters i.e. the concerned District Treasury Officers (DTOs),
Drawing and Disbursing Officer (DDOs) as well as to the
petitioners in individual cases, there shall be direction to the
concerned DTOs' & DDOs' through learned Law Officer to do
the needful i.e. to take all necessary follow up action for
releasing the due and admissible pension to all the petitioners
in each of these cases within a period of two weeks from the
date of receipt of Pension Pay Order. The petitioners through
their learned counsel are also directed to complete all requisite
formalities, if any required at their end. The needful shall be
done by them within the aforesaid time-line. Due & admissible
pension be paid & released to the petitioners within the above
period. These petitions are disposed of in above terms.
Pending application(s), if any, also stand disposed of
accordingly."
6. Learned Additional Advocate General submits that in the
.
instant matters, pension cases of the petitioners, if not already sent,
will be forwarded by respondents No.1 to 3 to respondent No.4 within
two weeks from today. Learned counsel for respondent No.4, i.e.
Accountant General, Himachal Pradesh, submits that the same
exercise within the same timeline as is indicated in the decision
rendered in Savita Kumari's case, supra, shall be followed in the
instant petitions as well.
Learned Additional Advocate General also submits that
based upon the action taken by the office of respondent No.4, similar
process as has been undertaken to be adopted by the respondents in
Savita Kumari's case, supra, shall be adopted by the concerned
District Treasury Officers as well as the Drawing & Disbursing
Officers.
The writ petitions stand disposed of in the above terms
and also in light of observations & directions issued in Savita
Kumari's case, supra, which shall also be applicable to these
petitions as well. Pending miscellaneous application(s), if any, also
stand disposed of.
Jyotsna Rewal Dua
Judge
15th September, 2023(rohit)
