STATE OF KERALA Vs. T. R. VIJAYAKUMAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The common issue involved in these writ appeals is as to whether the cost of establishment payable to the Government by the respondents - private distilleries for deploying exercise officials to supervise the manufacturing of liquor and allied activities is the full pay and allowances payable to the post of the Officers deployed or only the charge allowance payable under Rule 53(b) of Part I of the Kerala Service Rules ( 'KSR' in short), since the Officers deployed were holding only additional charge?

(2.) The respondents in these writ appeals are private distilleries engaged in the manufacturing of Indian Made Foreign Liquor who sell the same to the Kerala State Beverages (Manufacturing and Marketing) Corporation. They filed the respective writ petitions raising a grievance that even though the Inspectors deputed to supervise the activities of the distilleries were holding only additional charge, the Excise Commissioner collected full pay and allowances payable to the post of Excise Inspector from them. In the writ petitions filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, the respondents sought a writ of mandamus directing the appellants to recompute the amount payable by them by way of cost of establishment for the period mentioned in those writ petitions, in terms of provisions of Rule 53(b) of Part I of KSR and to refund the amount collected from them in excess of the said amount and other ancillary reliefs. By the impugned judgments in the respective writ petitions, the learned Single Judge found that in view of Rule 53(b) of Part I of KSR and a previous judgment dtd. 26/5/2009 of a learned Single Judge of this Court in W.P.(C)No.10459 of 2008, which was marked as Ext.P1 in the writ petitions, the appellants are entitled to charge only the additional allowance and not full pay of the persons who were deployed in the distilleries of the respondents, since they were deputed by giving additional charge of the Excise Inspector of the respective Excise Range.

(3.) Heard the learned Senior Government Pleader and the learned counsel for the party respondents.