MUKESH DHANSUKHRAI MANKAD Vs. STATE OF GUJARAT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) By this petition, inter alia, under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, the petitioner has raised an issue as to whether it is or it is not open to the respondent State Government to pass an order of recovery of alleged excess payment made to the petitioner when the Division Bench of this Court, after examining the issue, held that the mistake committed by the University in not extending the proper designation to the petitioner was rectified by the University as well as holding that the petitioner has been granted appropriate scale of pay. The petitioner is challenging the order dated 13.10.2011 passed by the Deputy Secretary, Education Department and consequential order dated 4.1.2012 passed by the respondent no.3 - Gujarat University, as being illegal, arbitrary, unreasonable, unjust and violative of principles of natural justice.

(2.) The facts of the case, as culled out from the record, are as under:

(3.) Mr. B.T. Rao, learned advocate for the petitioner submitted that the State Government has passed the order dated 13.10.2011 whereby, it has been observed that the appointment of the petitioner as Assistant Registrar is not as per the rules as the petitioner did not possess the requisite qualification of Assistant Registrar, but possessed the qualification of Stenographer and salary has been paid of the Assistant Registrar. It is submitted that the State Government accordingly directed the University to cancel the designation and the pay scale which has been sanctioned to the petitioner with a further direction to the University to recover the salary paid in excess. It is submitted that the order dated 13.10.2011 is passed on an erroneous premise because, the case of the petitioner has never been a case of promotion, but was of giving the petitioner, appropriate designation. Therefore, the very basis of the order under challenge is erroneous and illegal. The State Government believed that no approval has been taken of the State Government while passing the order of promotion in favour of the petitioner, which action would be against the provisions of the University Act. Mr. Rao, learned advocate further submitted that the issue was already raised in the Public Interest Litigation filed before this Hon'ble Court and the said contention has been held to be devoid of merits. It is therefore, submitted that the order dated 13.10.2011 passed by the State Government, is liable to be quashed and set aside, being violative of articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution of India.