Smt. Girja Kanpal vs State Of Uttarakhand & Others
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Uttarakhand High Court

Smt. Girja Kanpal vs State Of Uttarakhand & Others on 21 May, 2025

Author: Manoj Kumar Tiwari

Bench: Manoj Kumar Tiwari

                                                  2025:UHC:4234-DB
    IN THE HIGH COURT OF UTTARAKHAND AT
                   NAINITAL

          Writ Petition (S/B) No.71 of 2017

Smt. Girja Kanpal                                   ...Petitioner

                             Vs.

State of Uttarakhand & others                   ... Respondents

Presence:
    Mr. M.C. Kandpal, learned Senior Counsel assisted by Mr.
    Chitrarth Kandpal, learned counsel for petitioner.
    Mr. Ganga Singh Negi, learned Addl. C.S.C. for State of
    Uttarakhand.

Coram:     Hon'ble Manoj Kumar Tiwari, J.
           Hon'ble Ashish Naithani, J.
JUDGMENT:

(per Hon'ble Justice Sri Manoj Kumar Tiwari)

Petitioner was serving as Lecturer in a Government Inter College. She was promoted and transferred as Principal to Government Girls Inter College, Bhowali, District Nainital where she joined duties on 29.07.2013. As per petitioner's date of birth she was due to retire on 30.09.2013. According to the petitioner, she was permitted to continue in service even beyond 60 years of age and she served as Principal of the Government Girls Inter College, Bhowali up to 11.02.2014. In this writ petition, petitioner has sought the following reliefs:-

"i. Issue a writ, or direction in the nature of Certiorari to quash the fixation of the pension of the petitioner on the basis of the order dated 3.5.2016 in the payscale 24410+7600=32010 issued by Chief Education Officer.

ii. Issue a writ, or direction in the nature of Mandamus commanding and directing the respondents to pay the pension to the petitioner considering the last pay scale which was provided to the petitioner in the payscale of 25375+7600 grade pay total Rs.32970/-in

2025:UHC:4234-DB place of 24410+7600 grade pay total Rs.32010/-.

v. Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of certiorari to quash the order dated 08.02.2017 passed by Director, Koshgar Pension and Hakdari, Civil Karyalaya, Haldwani, Nainital to recover the salary benefits of the increment from the pension of the petitioner."

2. Petitioner relies upon a document, which is enclosed as Annexure 2 to the writ petition for contending that one increment was given to the petitioner in the month of January 2014.

3. Learned State counsel however submits that no increment can be given to a Government servant after he or she attains the age of superannuation. He further submits that since petitioner was promoted as Principal only on 29.07.2013, therefore, as per Government policy next increment would be payable to a Government servant six months' after his/her promotion. Learned State Counsel further submits that the document relied upon by the petitioner, whereby one increment was sanctioned to her, is not available on record. He submits that said document appears to have been prepared by the petitioner while she was serving as Principal of the concerned institution.

4. Learned State counsel has drawn attention of this Court to supplementary counter affidavit filed by Govind Ram Jaiswal, Chief Education Officer, Nainital on 05.05.2025 where it is mentioned that the document relied by petitioner is not available in the office records of the school.

2025:UHC:4234-DB

5. Since the writ petition cannot be decided without adjudication of disputed question of fact, namely, whether the document, enclosed as Annexure 2 to the writ petition, was actually issued by the competent authority or not? This Court cannot decide such disputed question in a writ petition. We, therefore, dispose of the writ petition by permitting the petitioner to make representation to the Director, School Education for ventilation of her grievances. If petitioner makes representation to the Director, School Education seeking benefit of the document enclosed as Annexure 2 to the writ petition, Director, School Education shall examine the matter after calling a report from the Principal of the concerned school and also of the Chief Education Officer, Nainital and take decision as per law within six months from the date of production of such representation before him, alongwith certified copy of this order.

(Ashish Naithani, J.) (Manoj Kumar Tiwari, J.) 21.05.2025 Arti NAVEEN

DN: c=IN, o=HIGH COURT OF UTTARAKHAND, ou=HIGH COURT OF

2.5.4.20=3be23325146e76a0642bdf4943fb9046f487df006da82a131bb4e

CHANDRA 4403d3c0a15, postalCode=263001, st=UTTARAKHAND, serialNumber=18167EEFB5CA8CFFD421A103819DA875643AF56D653D0 95C6ED9A86DAAB21CE5, cn=NAVEEN CHANDRA Date: 2025.05.23 19:27:26 -07'00'