UNION OF INDIA Vs. AKHILESH KUMAR RASTOGI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The present petition under Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution of India seeks to assail the order dtd. 22/11/2022 passed by the learned Central Administrative Tribunal (Tribunal) in O.A. No. 1139/2022.

(2.) Vide the impugned order, the learned Tribunal has, while quashing office orders dtd. 9/8/2021 and 20/1/2022, allowed the OA preferred by the respondent and has consequently directed the petitioner to remove the anomaly in his pay scale vis-"-vis Mr. Sachidanand Jha (Mr. Jha), who is junior to him as per the seniority list of Income Tax Officers. The petitioner has, accordingly, been directed to grant all consequential benefits to the respondent by appropriately stepping up his pay at par with Mr. Jha, from the date the said anomaly in the pay arose.

(3.) The respondent joined the Income Tax Department as an Upper Division Clerk (UDC) on 24/2/1988 and was with passage of time, promoted as Tax Assistant, Senior Tax Assistant, Office Superintendent and finally as Inspector of Income Tax in 2004, on which post, both he and Mr. Jha are presently working. The respondent was till October 2006, all along drawing higher pay than Mr. Jha, whereafter, on account of his clearing the Departmental Exam for Income Tax Officers, the pay of Mr. Jha was enhanced by granting him two advance increments. Upon realizing that from this date, Mr. Jha was receiving higher pay than him, the respondent submitted representations dtd. 9/9/2021 and 23/9/2021 to the petitioners. Both these representations were rejected vide order dtd. 22/1/2022, compelling the respondent to approach the learned Tribunal by way of O.A. 1139/2022, which has been allowed vide the impugned order.