Jharkhand High Court
Jai Shankar Pandey vs The State Of Jharkhand on 7 May, 2024
Author: Rajesh Shankar
Bench: Rajesh Shankar
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JHARKHAND AT RANCHI
W.P.(S) No. 1136 of 2021
Jai Shankar Pandey ... ... Petitioner
Versus
1. The State of Jharkhand
2. The Principal Secretary, Department of School Education and
Literacy, Government of Jharkhand, Ranchi
3. The Director, Primary Education, Ranchi
4. The Deputy Commissioner-cum-Chairman, District Education
Establishment Committee, Giridih
5. The District Superintendent of Education, Giridih
6. The Accountant General, Jharkhand, Ranchi ... Respondents
CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE RAJESH SHANKAR
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For the Petitioner : Mr. Bhanu Kumar, Advocate
For the Respondent Nos.1 to 5 : Mr. Shubham Gautam,
AC to AAG-V
For the Respondent No. 6 : Mr. Amit Kumar Verma, Advocate
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Order No. 11 Dated: 07.05.2024
The present writ petition has been filed for quashing
Clause-7(Kha)(vi) of resolution as contained in memo no. 1145
dated 18.07.2019 (Annexure-8 to the writ petition) issued under
the signature of the respondent no. 2 - the Principal Secretary,
Department of School Education and Literacy (Directorate of
Primary Education), Government of Jharkhand, Ranchi, so far it
relates to not granting the benefit of Matric Trained Grade-I pay
scale with effect from the date of initial appointment to the
petitioner since he has retired with effect from 28.02.2019 and as
per the aforesaid provision, retired and dead teachers are not
entitled to get the aforesaid benefit, which is wholly arbitrary and
without any valid legal basis. Further prayer has been made for
issuance of direction upon the concerned respondent authorities to
grant consequential reliefs to the petitioner by way of payment of
difference of arrears of salary as well as revision of pension on
account of grant of Matric Trained Grade-I pay scale with effect
from the date of his initial appointment.
2. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the
petitioner was appointed as Assistant Teacher in Middle School,
Hariharpur, District-Giridih on 19.11.1982 in Matric untrained pay
scale of Rs.535-765/- and retired on 28.02.2019 after attaining the
age of superannuation. The petitioner is getting his pensionary
benefits as would be evident from the Authority Slip dated
03.04.2019 issued by the respondent no. 6 - the Accountant
General, Jharkhand, which clearly mentions his date of
appointment and date of retirement. The petitioner passed his
teachers training examination from Primary Teacher Education
College, Simaria in the year 1994 and the certificate was granted
by the Secretary, Bihar School Examination Board, Patna on
07.03.2006. He was granted promotion to Matric Trained Grade-II
pay scale in the year 2001 upon his satisfactory service by the
District Education Establishment Committee, Giridih.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioner, while explaining the
long litigation with the State Government, submits that there was
inordinate delay in sending the untrained teachers for training as
they were sent only in 1998 and the result was published in 2002
that too only after the order passed by the Hon'ble Supreme Court
on 05.09.1997. Accordingly, a writ petition being W.P.(S) No. 638
of 2006 was filed by some of the similarly situated teachers raising
their grievance that their seniority should have been fixed from the
date of their appointment as well as they should have been
considered for giving benefit of Grade-IV scale after completion of
8/12 years of their service. The Government of Jharkhand finally
issued resolution as contained in memo no. 3027 dated
14.12.2015 pursuant to dismissal of S.L.P (C) Nos. 5520-5522 of
2013 filed by the State of Jharkhand against the judgment dated
06.11.2012 passed by learned Division in batch of L.P.As led by
L.P.A No. 214 of 2008. As per Clause-15 of the said resolution, the
teachers would be granted Matric Trained Grade-I pay scale with
effect from the date of initial appointment. It was also provided in
Clause-15(iv) that arrears of difference of salary would be granted
with effect from 15.11.2000.
4. It is further submitted that in view of order passed by
this Court in the case of "Bam Shankar Prasad & Ors. Vs.
State of Jharkhand & Ors." [W.P.(S) No. 2266 of 2014] on
22.08.2017, a five-member committee was constituted and a
decision was taken to grant Matric Trained Grade-I scale even to
the teachers appointed prior to 1987 and an amended resolution
as contained in memo no. 1145 dated 18.07.2019 was issued
under the signature of the Principal Secretary, Department of
School Education and Literacy (Directorate of Primary Education),
Government of Jharkhand. As per Clause-7 of the resolution dated
18.07.2019, the resolution as contained in memo no. 3027 dated
14.12.2015 was suitably amended and in pursuance of provisions
contained in Clause 7(Kha), a decision was taken to grant Matric
Trained Grade-I pay scale to untrained teachers who were
appointed in 1982, 1983, 1984, 1986, 1987 and 1988 including
such teachers appointed on compassionate ground till 2012,
however, with certain conditions. As per the provisions contained
in Clause-7(Kha)(vi), it was decided that such teachers who are
either dead or retired would not be given the financial benefit
consequent upon grant of Matric Trained Grade-I scale with effect
from the date of appointment.
5. It is further submitted that the petitioner is aggrieved
with the provisions contained in Clause-7(Kha)(vi) of the resolution
dated 18.07.2019, as the same is wholly arbitrary, discriminatory
and in the teeth of the provisions of Article 14 and 16 of the
Constitution of India.
6. At this juncture, learned counsel for the petitioner
submits that the impugned resolution No. 1145 dated 18.07.2019
particularly Clause-7(Kha)(vi) has already been quashed by a
Bench of this Court in batch of writ petitions led by W.P.(S) No.
2589 of 2020 vide order dated 19.09.2023 (Sudhir Narayan Dwary
& Ors. Vs. The State of Jharkhand & Ors.) and hence, the present
writ petition may also be disposed of in terms with the said order.
7. Learned counsel for the respondents nos. 1 to 5 as well
as respondent no. 6 accept the fact that Clause-7(Kha)(vi) of the
impugned resolution No. 1145 dated 18.07.2019 has already been
quashed vide order dated 19.09.2023 in the aforesaid batch of writ
petitions.
8. Having heard learned counsel for the parties and
considering that Clause-7(Kha)(vi) of resolution No. 1145 dated
18.07.2019 issued under the signature of the Principal Secretary,
Department of School Education and Literacy (Directorate of
Primary Education), Government of Jharkhand has already been
quashed in the case of "Sudhir Narayan Dwary" (supra) and other
analogous cases, there is no need to quash the said resolution
once again.
9. Consequently, it is observed that the petitioner is
entitled to get the benefit of Grade-I pay scale from the date of his
initial appointment and for further grades if the same applies to
him. Accordingly, the benefits thereof including the pensionary
benefits shall be extended to the petitioner irrespective of his
retirement within a period of eight weeks from the date of
receipt/production of a copy of this order.
10. The writ petition is accordingly disposed of with
aforesaid observation and direction.
(Rajesh Shankar, J.)
Manish
