K.C. THAKUR Vs. STATE OF HARYANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioners herein (60 in number and 16 subsequent applicants) challenge Rule 1(2) of the Haryana Affiliated Colleges (Pension and Contributory Provident Fund) Rules, 1999 (hereinafter referred to as the Rules) to the extent it provides that enforcement of the said rules will be with effect from 11.5.1998. They claim that they are entitled to the benefit of the said rules as they have retired on or after 1.4.1995 from which date pension is made available to employees of Kurukshetra University and Maharshi Dayanand University who were holding non-pensionable posts till 1997-98.

(2.) Contention is that there cannot be discrimination among the retired employees of the affiliated colleges inter se in the matter of retiral benefits. Case of the petitioners further is that there is parity of the employees working in Government-aided private affiliated colleges with the teachers working in Government colleges in the matter of pay scale, working hours and other service conditions except that while in Government colleges, age of retirement is 58 years, in private colleges, the age of retirement is 60 years. There is also parity in the service conditions of the teachers of private colleges with the teachers working in Kurukshetra University, Kurukshetra, Maharshi Dayanand University, Rohtak and Guru Jambeshwar University, Hisar whose age of retirement is 60 years. The petitioners and employees of Universities were covered by the Contributory Provident Fund Scheme though they had made a demand for grant of pension and other retiral benefits as admissible to Haryana Government employees and the employees of Government-run colleges in lieu of contributory Provident Fund. This demand was accepted and a statement was made by the Governor on the floor of the Assembly on 6.3.1995 to this effect which was followed by notification of Kurukshetra Employees Pension Scheme, 1997 applicable to employees who were in service on 1.4.1995 and similar scheme was notified on 20.2.1998 in respect of Maharshi Dayanand University, Rohtak. The Government had also taken a decision regarding pension scheme for employees of private colleges as reflected in letter dated 16.3.1994 but matter remained pending for want of some information for which reference is made to a letter dated 9.4.1997, Annexure P.4. A letter dated 12.5.1998 was also written to the Principals of the colleges seeking details of Contributory Provident Fund shared by managements and further letter dated 12.6.1998, Annexure P.6. However, in the notification dated 31.5.1999 introducing pension scheme, provision had been made to enforce the scheme w.e.f. 11.5.1998 which was an arbitrary cut off date. Since the petitioners had retired prior to 11.5.1998, they have been deprived of the pension.

(3.) In the written statement filed on behalf of the Higher Education Commissioner, Haryana, it is stated that employees of private affiliated colleges and employees of Universities and State Government ware governed by different set of rules. There is no right of parity of the employees of affiliated colleges in the matter of pension with the employees of Universities or the State of Haryana. In Chaudhary Charan Singh Agricultural University, pension scheme is in operation since 1.1.1992 while in Kurukshetra University, Maharshi Dayanand University and Guru Jambeshwar University, this was introduced w.e.f. 1.4.1995. The Government was under no obligation to introduce pension scheme for employees of private colleges and cut off date was fixed having regard to financial liability and the said date was not arbitrary. Introducing pension scheme was a policy decision of the Government and mere asking for information did not create any right for introduction of a pension scheme from a particular date.