REMLALNGHAKA Vs. STATE OF MIZORAM

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard Mr. A.R. Malhotra, learned counsel for the petitioners and Mrs. H. Lalmalsawmi, learned Govt. Advocate who appears for all the respondents. The writ petitioners have filed the instant writ petition with the following prayer:-

(2.) The petitioners are all working either as Associate Professors or Professors in different Government Colleges all over Mizoram under the Mizoram Higher and Technical Education Department, Govt. of Mizoram. It is the case of the petitioners that the Govt. of India in the Ministry of Finance vide Notification dtd. 29/8/2008 in exercise of the powers conferred by the proviso to Article 309 of the Constitution of India and Clause (5) of Article 148 of the Constitution after consultation with the Comptroller and Auditor General in relation to persons serving in the Indian Audit and Accounts Department notified the Central Civil Services (Revised Pay) Rules, 2008 (Revised Pay Rules of 2008) which came into force from 1/1/2006. Similarly, the Govt. of Mizoram in the Finance Department (Pay Research Unit) vide Notification dtd. 6/8/2010 notified the Mizoram (Revision of Pay) Rules, 2010 (ROP Rules of 2010). The notification was issued in exercise of the powers conferred by proviso to Article 309 read with Article 162 of the Constitution of India by the Governor of Mizoram. Clause 10 of the ROP Rules of 2010 provides for the date of next increment in the revised pay structure. It provides that there will be uniform date of annual increment namely, 1stJuly of every year. Clause 10 of the ROP Rules of 2010 may be abstracted hereunder:-

(3.) However, while implementing the Revised Pay Rules of 2008, the Central Govt. employees who were due to get their annual increments between February to June during 2006 having been deprived of one (1) increment, the Govt. of India in the Ministry of Finance, Department of Expenditure issued an Office Memorandum dtd. 19/3/2012 relaxing Rule 10 of the Revised Pay Rules of 2008 and granting one (1) increment to those central government employees who were due to get their annual increment between February to June, 2006 as a one-time measure while providing that next increment in the revised pay structure will be on 1/7/2006. The Office Memorandum was issued in exercise of the powers conferred upon the President of India by the Revised Pay Rules of 2008 more particularly, Rule 16. Similarly, the Govt. of Mizoram in the Finance Department came with an Office Memorandum dtd. 9/1/2014 granting similar benefit of one (1) increment to those employees whose increment were due between February to June, 2006 and the increment which fell due was granted only with effect from 1/1/2014 and that the next date of increment would be on 1/7/2014. The Office Memorandum dtd. 9/1/2014, was issued in exercise of the powers conferred upon the Governor of Mizoram by Rule 22 of the ROP Rules of 2010.