ISHWRLAL KALIDAS RANA Vs. STATE OF GUJARAT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) By means of this petition, the petitioners have sought for a direction to the respondents to extend all service benefits to the petitioners which are extended by the respondents to the employees of District cadre, Taluka cadre and employees of erstwhile municipalities converted into Nagarpalikas and for a further direction to give service benefits to the petitioners like (1) revision of pay scale and arrears of pay as per Sarela Pay Commission, Desai Pay Commission and 4th Pay Commission recommendations (2) all retirement benefits and pensionary benefits and gratuity etc. (3) appointment on compassionate ground to the dependents of the deceased employees and (4) promotion and selection grade benefits and all to give the petitioners difference of salary pursuant to the recommendations of Sarela and Desai Pay Commissions and 4th Pay Commission and all other consequential benefits therefrom. Alternatively, the petitioners have also prayed to direct the State Government to give all necessary grant and funds to respondent no. 3 Vansda Taluka Panchayat to enable it to pay all arrears of service benefits to the petitioners.

(2.) According to the assertions made in the petition, there was a municipality in Vansda under Bombay State before formation of the State of Gujarat. The municipality of Vansda was converted into Gram Panchayat with effect from 14.1.1955 as per the provisions of the Bombay Panchayats Act. On bifurcation of the State of Gujarat, Gujarat Panchayats Act 1961 came into effect from 1.4.63. At that time, there were 92 municipalities in the State of Gujarat. The above municipalities were converted into Gram Panchayats/Nagar Panchayats. The employees working with the respondent no. 3 Vansda Gram Panchayat are exactly similarly situated to the employees who were working in other municipalities which were converted into Gram/Nagar Panchayats. All the benefits have been extended to the employees who were working in other municipalities and who have been converted into Gram/Nagar Panchayats. The respondents are not giving to the petitioners regular salaries pursuant to the Pay Commissions' reports and the respondents are giving them only meagre amount under Minimum Wages Act which is absolutely illegal, discriminatory and violative of Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution of India. Some of the employees of other municipalities/Gram and Nagar Panchayats filed Special Civil Application nos. 309 of 1975 challenging the action of the State Government as discriminatory. The aforesaid petition was allowed. In the case of R.K.Soni vs. State of Gujarat reported in AIR 1976, Gujarat, 76, this Court directed the State Government to decide the question of the petitioners thereof and other allowances and to pay them revised pay scales and make suitable provisions for promotion to appropriate cadre in the State service and give them other benefits. The State of Gujarat preferred an appeal before the Supreme Court against the judgment of this Court and the judgment of this Court has been confirmed by the Supreme Court which is reported in AIR 1984, SC, 161. In the said judgment, it has been held that the panchayat service constituted under section 203 of the Panchayt Act is a civil service of the State and the members of the panchayat are government servants. It has also been observed that the High Court was justified in directing the State Government to discharge its statutory duty to make orders for equation of position and to extend benefits arising out of the reports of the Pay Commission in question. The Panchayat service consists of District cadre, Taluka cadre and local cadre. The petitioners are in local cadre. The State Government has extended all the benefits to the employees working in the District/Taluka cadres and the State Government has not given most of the benefits to the employees working in local cadre inspite of the fact that under section 203 of the Gujarat Panchayats Act, all the three cadres consists of Panchayat service. It is further stated that the State Government has been giving 100% grants to the District and Taluka Panchayats. Gram and and Nagar Panchayats are organs of the local self Government at the lowest level and they have been delegated all revenue functions of the State Government. The powers of the State Government have been extended in respect of registration of Birth and Death, Registration of Marriage and Prevention of Food Adulteration Act and those powers have been delegated to the Gram and Nagar Panchayats. The provisions of section 203 of Gujarat Panchayats Act, 1961 say that there will be uniform scales of pay and uniform conditions of service of persons employed in the discharge of functions and duties of Panchayats and there shall be constituted a Panchayat service. Various benefits have not been given to the petitioners and the persons working in the local cadre such as revision of pay scale, arrears of pay as per Sarela Pay Commission, Desai Pay Commission and 4th Pay Commission recommendations, all retirement benefits and pensionary and gratuity benefits etc., appointment on compassionate ground to the dependent of deceased employees and promotion and selection grade benefits. It is further stated that the Sarpanch of Vansda Gram Panchayat sent a letter dated 30th December, 1989 to the Development Commissioner, stating therein that Vansda Gram Panchayat was not included in the list of converted Nagar/Gram Panchayats and the benefits have not been extended. The Panchayat was not getting any grant from the State Government. Therefore, Panchayat was not in a postiion to pay full salary to its employees. The employees of the Panchayat are not getting retirement benefits and they are also not getting the benefits which are extended to the State employees. The State Government, through section officer sent a letter dated 8th January 1999 in reply to the Sarpanch's letetr and it was stated in that letter that the decision of the Supreme Court was applicable only to those Gram/Nagar Panchayats which were converted from municipalities under section 302 of the Gujarat Panchayats Act. It is also mentioned that Vansda Municipality was converted into Gram Panchahyat with effect from 14th January, 1955 pursuant to the provisions of Bombay Gram Panchayats Act. Hence, Vansda Gram Panchayat was not included. They again addressed a letter dated 16.3.79 to the Development Commissioner requesting him to give benefits of Sarela and Desai Pay Commissions with a request to sanction the establishment of Vansda Gram Panchayat and give benefits of Sarela and Desai Pay Commission recommendations to the employees. But with some ulterior motive, the respondents have not extended all service benefits to the petitioners which have been extended to the employees of other panchayats. section 203sections 206 and 307 of the Gujarat Panchayats Act, 1961

(3.) The Under Secretary from the office of the Secretary, Panchayat, Rural Housing and Rural Development Department has filed affidavit-in-reply to the petition. It is stated therein that the petitioners are only daily wagers of the Gram Panchayat. The ratio laid down in the Supreme Court judgment reported in AIR 1984, SC, 161 is not applicable to the case of the petitioners. The petitioners are not allocated employees from Ex-municipality to Gram/Nagar Panchayat as per the Government order no. CFS-1865-1446-Ch dated 11.2.69 and as per sections 206 and 307 of the Gujarat Panchayats Act, 1961. They are neither panchayat services nor State services employees. The High Court in the case reportd in 1998(2) GLR, 1644 and in SCA No.4554 of 1993 dated 27th July, 1998 reported in 1988 GLR, 2264 has held that the petitioners are not entitled to get the benefits as prayed for in the petition. The set up of the said post was not sanctioned by the competent authority i.e. District Development Officer/Development Commissioner or State of Gujarat. As per the judgment of the Supreme Court and the Government circular dated 25th August, 1983 Gram/Nagar Panchayat is not empowered for recruitment or appointment, promotion or pay fixation. Eventhough the gram/nagar panchayat has made such procedure itself, it will be considered as cancelled. The gram/nagar panchayat is a self governing autonomous body under the provisions of the Gujarat Panchayats Act. As per section 228 of the Gujarat Panchayats Act, 1993 the establishment expenditure is met by the gram/nagar panchayat from its own funds and the gram/nagar panchayat can do such establishment expenditure upto 45% of the total annual income of the gram/nagar panchayat as per the Government resolution no. NPM-1691-467-K dated 14.9.93. The petitioners were not allocated employees as per the Government resolution no. CFS-1865-1446-Ch dated 11.2.69 and as per sections 206 and 307 of the Gujarat Panchayats Act, 1961 and nor they were recruited as per the due procedure prescribed under section 203 of the Gujarat Panchayats Act, 1961. Therefore, they are neither panchayat services nor State services employees. They are only daily wagers and they are not entitled to get the benefits as prayed for by them in the present petition. The set up of the said employees is not sanctioned by the District Development Officer/Development Commissioner or by the Government. As the petitioners werenot recruited as per theprovisions of the Gujarat Panchayats Act, 1961 and they were not allocated employees nor panchayat services employees and they are also not employees of the State Government. Hence, they are not entitled for any benefits as prayed for by them in the present petition.