Uttarakhand High Court
Ramesh Chand vs Uttarakhand Transport Corporation And ... on 5 June, 2024
Author: Pankaj Purohit
Bench: Pankaj Purohit
HIGH COURT OF UTTARAKHAND AT NAINITAL
Writ Petition (S/S) No.1326 of 2023
Ramesh Chand ....Petitioner
Versus
Uttarakhand Transport Corporation and Ors.
....Respondents
Presence:-
Mr. I.D. Paliwal, learned counsel for the petitioner.
Mr. Ashish Joshi, learned counsel for the
respondents, appeared through video conferencing.
Hon'ble Pankaj Purohit, J. (Oral)
Heard learned counsel for the parties.
2. By means of this writ petition, petitioner
has sought for following reliefs:
"i) Issue a writ of certiorari quashing the impugned
office order dated 13.12.2021 passed by respondent
No.3 (contained as Annexure No.1 to this writ
petition).
ii) Issue a writ of certiorari quashing the impugned
office order dated 31.12.2021 passed by respondent
No.3 to that extent the respondents were directed to
deduct the amount from the payment of gratuity of
about Rs.4,17,357/- (contained as Annexure No.2 to
this writ petition).
iii) Issue a writ order or direction in the nature of
mandamus commanding and directing the
respondents to re-fix the pay scale of the petitioner as
per 2nd ACP Grade Pay of Rs.2800 since 1.9.2008
and the 3rd ACP in grade pay of Rs.4200 since
1.1.2012 and to pay the difference of arrear of
payment towards gratuity and leave encashment as
per 2nd and 3rd ACP.
iv) Issue a writ order or direction in the nature of
mandamus commanding and directing the
respondents to pay the balance amount towards
gratuity i.e. Rs.4,17,357/- along with interest @ 18%
per annum and pay the arrear of 7th Pay Commission
which is still unpaid."
3. Petitioner was initially appointed in Work
Shop, Haridwar Depot 01.11.1983 in the then Uttar
Pradesh Transport Corporation. He was duly retired
from the services of the respondent department on
31.10.2020. On 13.12.2021 and 31.12.2021, the
Assistant General Manager Haridwar Depot,
Uttarakhand Transport Corporation, Rishikesh
issued officer orders, whereby, respondent No.3
informed the petitioner that the salary of the
petitioner was revised/amended and thereafter, re-
fixed pursuant to the letter No.164 dated 11.11.2020
and thereafter, when the office order regarding
payment of gratuity has been issued, at that point of
time, it was directed to recover the payment of
gratuity of about Rs.4,17,357/- from the petitioner,
whereas, the same was sanctioned of about
Rs.9,81,720/- in favour of the petitioner, which is
totally illegal and arbitrary for the reason that before
the said fixation, the respondents did not give any
opportunity of hearing to the petitioner. After re-
fixation of the salary of the petitioner pursuant to the
aforesaid letter No.164 dated 11.11.2020, that too
after retirement of the petitioner, the respondents
have deducted the amount from payment of gratuity.
4. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits
that the controversy has been set at rest by a
Coordinate Bench of this Court, vide judgment and
order dated 14.06.2022 passed in WPSS No.1593 of
2021 Balam Singh Aswal Vs. Managing Director and
Others and Batch of writ petitions, which are
subsequently affirmed by the Division Bench of this
Court vide judgment and order dated 04.04.2024 in
Special Appeal No.245 of 2022, Managing Director,
Uttarakhand Transport Corporation, Dehradun &
Others Vs. Ashok Kumar Saxena, and Batch of Special
Appeals.
5. Learned counsel for the respondents has
also submitted that the present matter is squarely
covered by the judgment and order dated 14.06.2022,
which was affirmed in Special Appeals as referred
above by learned counsel for the petitioner vide
judgment dated 04.04.2024.
6. In this view of the matter, the writ petition
is allowed in terms of the judgment and order dated
14.06.2022 passed by a Coordinate Bench of this
Court in WPSS No.1593 of 2021 Balam Singh Aswal
Vs. Managing Director and Others and Batch, which is
affirmed by a Division Bench of this Court in Special
Appeal No.245 of 2022 Managing Director,
Uttarakhand Transport Corporation, Dehradun &
Others Vs. Ashok Kumar Saxena and Batch, vide
judgment dated 04.04.2024. The case of the
petitioner shall abide by the aforesaid judgment and
order dated 14.06.2022, which is later on affirmed
vide judgment dated 04.04.2024 in Special Appeals
as stated above.
(Pankaj Purohit, J.)
05.06.2024
PN
