ABHIJIT RAY Vs. STATE OF TRIPURA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Petitioner is an employee of the Tripura Rehabilitation Plantation Corporation Limited (hereinafter to be referred to as TRPCL). The petitioner has made following prayers.

(2.) These prayers arise in following background. The petitioner was initially engaged as a Company Secretary by the respondent No.2, TRPCL w.e.f 14.11.1990 on a fixed monthly salary of Rs.1,000/-. Such engagement was continued from time to time till 12.06.2001. By an order dated 13.06.2001 the petitioner was appointed as an Assistant Company Secretary on adhoc basis in the scale of pay of Rs.7,800 - 15,100/- by adjusting against the post Company Secretary which carried the scale of pay of Rs.12,000 - 18,400/-. This adhoc appointment also continued for sometime till TRPCL initiated a selection process for appointment of Assistant Company Secretary on regular basis. For such purpose, an advertisement was issued inviting eligible candidates to apply. The petitioner applied in response to the said advertisement. He was selected and appointed on the post of Assistant Company Secretary on regular basis in the pay scale of Rs.9,570 - 30,000/- with a grade pay of Rs.3,500/- under an office memorandum dated 10.01.2012. The petitioner made a representation to the department on 13.10.2014 requesting that for the period during which he had discharged his duties on fixed salary and on adhoc basis, he may be given the benefit of leave.

(3.) The case of the petitioner is that the post of Assistant Company Secretary on which he was appointed on regular basis, carried a higher pay scale. According to the petitioner, TRPCL had decided to fill up the vacancy in terms of the prevalent recruitment rules under which scale of pay prescribed for the post in question was Rs.7,800 - 15,100/- which was subsequently revised. Instead of granting the corresponding revised pay scale to the petitioner at the time of his appointment, he was placed in the lower scale of pay of Rs.9,500 - 13,500/- with a grade pay of Rs.3,500/- which corresponded to the pre revised scale of Rs.7,450 - 13,000/- . In the petition, the petitioner has also fleetingly referred to his past service on fixed salary and adhoc basis to be counted towards pensionable service as it was a regular service, however, no such prayer is made in the prayer clause.