R S KUMBHARVADIA Vs. STATE OF GUJARAT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioners, who are holding the post of Agricultural Assistants in the Department of Agriculture, Government of Gujarat at Ahmedabad and working at Rajkot Division, by this petition under Article 226 of the Constitution are praying for quashing and setting aside of the order dated 5-12-1994 qua the petitioners and further prayed for direction to the respondents to restore the benefits of higher pay scale which were granted to them under various orders referred in this special civil application. As usual, prayer has also been made for grant of interim relief that is to restrain the respondents from making any recovery from the petitioners No.1, 2 and 25 of the amount of salary paid excess to them. By amendment of the special civil application, prayer has been made for declaring clause 3 (2) of the Government Resolution dated 16-8-1994 to be unjust, arbitrary, illegal and for quashing and setting aside the same.

(2.) The facts of the case are not in dispute. The petitioners sought inter-division transfer on their own request on account of what they stated of their social and family circumstances. Request made by the petitioners was accepted and they were ordered to be transferred to Rajkot Division on their own request on the dates as mentioned in the writ petition. The State of Gujarat introduced a scheme to extend the benefits of higher pay scale to its employees on completion of 9 years, 18 years and 27 years of the services under the Government Resolution dated 5-7-1991. It is not in dispute that after the Resolution aforesaid the petitioners were granted the benefit of higher pay scale from the respective dates as given out in the statement. However, under the order dated 5-12-1994 the benefits of the higher pay scale given to the petitioners came to be withdrawn. They made a representation against that decision which came to be rejected on 16-12-1996 vide annexure `E'. Hence, this special civil application before this court.

(3.) Learned counsel for the petitioners contended that once the benefit of higher pay scale has been given to the petitioners and more so when they have to their credit the qualifying services which makes them eligible for grant thereof, in later point of time, the same could not have been withdrawn. It has next been contended that for the purpose of giving of the benefit of resolution under which the provision has been made for grant of higher pay scale to the employees on completion of the years of services as provided therein their total length of service has to be considered and even if they have been transferred to some other Division at the loss of seniority they could have been deprived of those benefits. Hence, the impugned orders and the clause of the resolutions, validity of which is challenged in this special civil application is wholly arbitrary and unjustified and in case it is given effect to then the very purpose of introducing the benefit of higher pay scale to remove the stagnation which the employees are facing will become redundant, ineffective and inoperative and the very purpose and object of the same will be defeated. So the beneficial interpretation has to be given to the resolution which extends the benefits and not that it may take away the benefits.