STATE OF HARYANA Vs. RAM CHANDER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) State of Haryana and Director of Industrial Training and Vocational Education having obtained special leave to appeal from this Court under Article 136 of the Constitution of India have moved this appeal against the judgment and order rendered by the Punjab & Haryana High Court in Letter Patent Appeal No. 1267 of 1992 which was dismissed by the Division Bench of the High Court and whereby the judgment of the learned single Judge of the High Court against the appellants was confirmed.

(2.) In order to highlight the grievance of the appellants it is necessary to note a few backdrop facts. Respondent Nos. 1 and 2 who only remain in the arena of contest as respondent Nos. 3 and 4 were ordered to be deleted by an earlier order of this Court dated 8th April 1997, are working as Language Teachers in Haryana Government Vocational Education Institute. They teach Hindi and English to standard 11 and 12 students who study in such institutes. The respondents were appointed in pay scale of Rs. 600 -1100/ - which was subsequently revised to Rs. 1400 -2600/ - with effect from 1 -1 -1986 as per Haryana Civil Services (Revised Pay) Rules, 1987. The respondents' grievance is that as they were Language Teachers teaching students of standards 11 and 12 forming part of higher secondary educational system should have been paid the same pay scale that was made available to their counterparts who were teaching standard 11 and 12 students in higher secondary schools in the State. That they were equally circumscribed as their aforesaid counterparts and consequently on the principle of 'Equal Pay for Equal Work' they were entitled to higher pay scale which was made available to higher secondary school teachers in these schools. Said higher pay scale was initially Rs. 1640/2900/ - which was further revised by the appellant -State with effect from 1st May 1990 to Rs. 2000 -3500/ -. It is this revised pay scale which, according to the respondents, should have been made available to them and as that was not granted they filed Civil Writ Petition No. 16543 of 1990 in the High Court of Punjab & Haryana.

(3.) A learned single Judge of the High Court after hearing the appellants herein as well as the contesting respondents came to the conclusion that there was no justification for the appellant -State to deny equal pay scales to the respondents as were made available to Lecturers in higher secondary schools as the nature of work carried out by the respondents was identical with the work of the teachers in higher secondary schools. The learned Judge negatived the contention of the appellants that respondents were not comparable with the higher secondary school teachers as the respondents' educational qualifications differed from those which were required to he possessed by higher secondary school teachers -cum -lecturers. In the view of the learned single Judge educational qualification wise respondents were better situated. The learned single Judge accordingly allowed the writ petition and directed the appellants to make available to the respondents higher pay scale of Rs. 2000 -3500/ - as was granted to higher secondary school teachers. However the arrears payable to the respondents were made payable from the date of the judgment of the learned single Judge which was rendered on 15th July 1992.