S. ANILKUMAR Vs. STATE OF KERALA AND ORS.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner was appointed as Publicity Assistant in the Spices Board with effect from 24/11/1988 and he continued in the said post till 13/8/1995. Thereafter, the petitioner joined the service of the 2nd respondent University on 14/8/1995 as Public Relations Officer. By Ext.P9 order dtd. 27/9/1999, the University gave sanction to the Vice Chancellor to reckon the period of 6 years, 8 months and 20 days service of the petitioner in Spices Board, for pensionary benefits as per G.O.(P)No.369/87/Fin. dtd. 31/3/1987.

(2.) While effecting the revision of pay during 2004 and 2009, the pay of the petitioner was fixed on the basis of service weightage, calculated by including his prior service in the Spices Board. Ext.P1 produced along with the writ petition is the order by which the University adopted the 8th pay revision as issued by the Government of Kerala, with effect from 1/7/2004. Ext.P2 which is the pay fixation effected on the basis of Ext.P1 takes in the service of the petitioner in the Spices Board. Subsequently, the pay was again revised with effect from 2009. Ext.P3 statement of pay shows that fixation as per the pay revision of 2009 was also done taking into account the service rendered by the petitioner in the Spices Board.

(3.) On the question whether service weightage for fixation of pay can be granted for prior service of University employees, the 1 st respondent had issued Ext.P5 order, which would show that prior Government Service of University employees will be reckoned for service weightage and that it will not be reckoned for any other service benefits. The above position was clarified by the 1 st respondent in their letter Ext.P6, to the University stating that the prior service only takes in State Government service. On 04. 08.2014, the University issued Ext.P4 memo to the petitioner, wherein it was stated that the objection raised in the Local Fund Audit Report for 2007-08, to the counting of prior service rendered by the petitioner in the Spices Board, for the pay fixation of the petitioner consequent to 2004 pay revision, is found to be correct and that the pay fixation stands cancelled. The memo requires the petitioner to file a re-option for pay revision of 2004 in the changed circumstances. This was followed by Ext.P7 statement of pay fixation, giving effect to the correction as suggested by the audit objection. Ext.P7 also says that the excess salary paid to the petitioner will be recovered from his monthly salary in 24 installments. Ext.P8 is the consequential pay fixation on the basis of pay revision of 2009, wherein also it is stated that excess pay drawn by the petitioner will be recovered.