20 December 2022
Delhi High Court
Delhi School Education Act, 1973 – Section 10 - Delay in filing writ petition seeking 7th CPC salary is no ground to deny arrears w.e.f. 01.01.2016 – Delhi High Court
In the year 2022, Mr. Mukesh Kumar Verma, PGT (Physical
Education), filed a writ petition [W.P. (C) 6841/2022] seeking salary as
per 7th CPC in terms of Section 10 of the Delhi School Education
Act, 1973.
The petition was
opposed by the Lions Public School, Delhi, on the ground that the writ petition
was belated and, therefore, the arrears of salary can only be paid for a period
of 3 years preceding the date of filing the writ petition.
Delhi High Court, vide
Order dated 20.12.2022, allowed the writ petition filed by Mr. Verma and held
that delay in filing a writ petition is not a valid ground for denying arrears
of salary to an employee w.e.f. 01.01.2016. The directive paragraph of the Order
dated 20.12.2022 is reproduced below for ready reference: -
“26. The issue
also arose for consideration before a Division Bench of this Court in Vidya
Bharati School v. Directorate of Education & Ors., in LPA No.
541/2018 decided on 16.09.2022 and relying on the judgment of the Supreme Court
in Keraleeya Samajam and Another (supra), the Division Bench held that
limiting the claim of arrears to three years prior to filing the writ petition
is untenable in view of the dicta of the Supreme Court. The Division Bench held
that the School did not comply with the directions and obligations when it was required
to do so by revising the salaries in accordance with Section 10(1) of the
DSE&R on account of the revision under 6th CPC and now due to lapse of
time, it cannot take away the benefits because of its own recalcitrance to
comply with Government’s directions and statutory obligations. Non-compliance
over a long period would not create any special equities in favour of the
School and it does not get absolved of its statutory obligation to pay salaries
in terms of 6th Pay Commission recommendations, as pay revisions in terms of
Pay Commissions’ recommendations is a matter of public policy, with the
objective of ensuring that with passage of time, purchasing power of the
Government employee is not denuded by inflation and other relevant factors.
Even in Shikha Sharma (supra), this Court has directed release of
arrears under 6th CPC to the Petitioners in the said case without any
restrictions/limitation of three years prior to the filing of the writ
petitions and in fact, has also directed payment of interest @ 6% per annum
with a further direction that on failure to pay the amounts within six months
as directed by the Court, the School will incur a liability of payment of a
higher rate of interest i.e. 9% per annum on the arrears of both 6th and 7th CPC.
Both the contentions of the School are thus rejected.”
[Mukesh Kumar
Verma Vs. Lions Public
School & Ors., W.P. (C) 6841/2022, decided on 20.12.2022]
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