NIRMALABEN M DAVE Vs. DISTRICT DEVELOPMENT OFFICER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The sole question which has emerged in this Letters Patent Appeal under clause 15 of the Letters Patent against the judgment and order of the learned single Judge in Special Civil Application No.4349 of 1997 is, as to whether the appellant-original petitioner is entitled to the benefit of stepping up and to get the order of grant of stepping up of pay dated 25.8.94 (which subsequently came to be revoked being not admissible and permissible) and the resultant monetary and pensionary benefits or not, to which the learned single Judge has positively and specifically replied in the negative.

(2.) A conspectus of relevant and material factual profile leading to the rise of this Letters Patent Appeal may, shortly, be articulated so as to appreciate the merits and challenge against the appeal.

(3.) The appellant, who is hereinafter referred to as the original petitioner, for the sake of convenience, came to be, initially, appointed in the erstwhile School Board on 19.8.54, and came to be transferred to Bhavnagar District Panchayat Service with effect from 1.4.63 and retired on superannuation on 28.2.89. The petitioner was granted benefit of stepping up of her pay with effect from 22.2.72 by the order dated 25.8.94 recorded by the first respondent, District Development Officer of Bhavnagar District, Bhavnagar subject to the approval by the authority concerned or the auditing agency.The aforesaid order in favour of the original petitioner came to be revoked for want of approval by the Audit Department by the order dated 14.8.97.