L NALINI DEVI Vs. STATE OF MANIPUR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) In these batches of writ petition, the reliefs which had been sought and prayed for by all the petitioners are one and the same inasmuch as, they made a prayer for a direction to the state-respondents to afford salary of a lecturer (Higher Secondary School) or the salary proportionate to the services being rendered by them with the benefits of senior scale provisions with all arrears, salaries and also, for an interim direction to the respondents for affording latest Revised pay scale of Graduate Teachers under the latest Revision of pay under Notification No. 2(6)75/91 -SE(S) dated the 3rd August, 1991, notified on 9.8.91 pending the disposal of the writ petitions.

(2.) According to the petitioner-Smti L Nalini Devi in Civil Rule No. 1534/92, she is an MA(Pol. Science) and obtained the degree of B.T. from Gauhati University in the year 1975 and on her being qualified for the post of Lecturer in Basic Training College, Govt. of Manipur, she was appointed on the 4th of April, 1978, on ad-hoc basis to a regular vacant post of lecturer in the said college and, thereafter, her adhoc appointment was regularised without giving retrospective effect from the date of her initial appointment and since then she has been serving regularly till date, and, at the moment, the said B.T. College has been renamed or upgraded as, the District Institute of Education and Training, hereinafter referred to as "DIET" under an independent Director namely the Director (SCERT). By virtue of the Manipur Services (Revised Pay) Rules, 1989, hereinafter referred to as Revised Pay Rules, 1989, the pay scale of a lecturer has been revised from Rs. 1640/- to 2900/- to Rs. 2250-3750/- p.m. with effect from 1.7.88. Though the petitioner is appointed as lecturer since the year 1978, she has been denied of the pay scale proportionate or equal to the services rendered by her in the said college like her colleagues similarly situated under the Directorate of Education(S). It is also asserted, thai by virtue of another Govt. notification dated 3.8.91 as in Annexure A/8 to the writ petition two extra grades namely "Senior scafe" and "selection grade scale" for both the cadre of graduate teachers and also the grade of lecturer(Higher Secondary School) have: been introduced and the benefits of it have already been afforded to the graduate teachers as well as the lecturers. It is also the case of the said petitioner, that sheer injustice and discrimination have been done to her as she have been denied, not to speak of the salary of a lecturer of Higher Secondary School, but even the salary of a graduate teacher and, rather, she is being given only pre-revised salary of Rs. 1350-2200/-. Likewise, petitioners, in Civil Rule No. 1535/ 92 namely, Smti M Mani Devi, Smti A Subhasini Devi, Smti L Binodini Devi and Smti I Sulochana Devi, contended that they have been serving as Theory Instructors under the DIET in the Directorate of SCERT, Govt. of Manipur since a pretty long time but they have been afforded prerevised salary of Rs. 1350- 2200A- not to speak of even the salary of a graduate teacher under the Directorate of Education. According to them, their cases are similarly situated with the case of Smti L Nalini Devi, the writ petitioner in Civil Rule No. 1534/92.

(3.) In Civil Rule No. 1536/92, the writ petitioner namely Smti R K Thaninsana Devi, urged that she was appointed as Theony Instructor in the erstwhile Basic Training Institute, Govt of Manipur, on 15.11.72 against the regular vacant post of a Theory Instructor and she passed the related training courses sponsored by the Central Govt. in the fields relating to education and her services have been utilised by the authority concerned as a lecturer since the year 1978 under the DIET. According to her, she is to be paid the salaries not less than or equal to that of a lecturer in the Higher Secondary Schools, Govt. of Manipur, since the lecturer in the Higher Secondary School is also teaching the subjects to the students who have to pass matriculation exam, or otherwise, but, she is being given only the pre-revised salary of Rs. 1350-2200/ - even not to mention of the pay of a lecturer, i.e. Rs. 1640-2900/- p.m. According to this writ petitioner, the respondents have violated the Fundamental Rights of the writ petitioner and she has been denied equal pay or the salary proportionate to the services being rendered by her.