KASHMIR CHAND Vs. PUNJAB STATE ELECTRICITY BOARD

JUDGEMENT

(1.) In this writ petition filed under Articles 226/227 of the Constitution of India, the petitioner has sought a writ of mandamus directing the respondents to count the period of service rendered by him on daily- wage/work-charge basis along with the regular service for pensionary benefits.

(2.) The petitioner was appointed as Wireless Operator on daily-wage basis on 9.3.1987 and he joined as such on 21.3.1987. He was promoted as work-charge Electrician on 21.4.1993. The services of the petitioner were regularised with effect from 3.4.1997. He retired from the services of the respondents on attaining the age of superannuation on 31.7.2002. Since the period of 6 years and 29 days spent on daily-wage service was not counted towards pension and other pensionary benefits in spite of submitting several representations, the petitioner filed Civil Writ Petition No. 10841 of 2002, which was disposed of by this Court by issuing directions to the respondents to pass an appropriate speaking order within a period of 4 months from the date the certified copy was brought to their notice. The respondents passed a speaking order dated 3.10.2002 stating that only work-charge service and regular service would be counted towards pension. The total period of aforesaid services was 9 years, 3 months and 13 days and the same being less than 10 years, pension was not payable to the petitioner. The petitioner challenged the order dated 3.10.2002 by filing C.W.P. No. 17946 of 2002. This Court quashed the order dated 3.10.2002 vide order dated 24.11.2002, which is reproduced as under :-

(3.) Learned counsel for the petitioner relied on a Full Bench judgment of this Court in Kesar Chand v. State of Punjab and others, 1989 2 RSJ 629 and also on the judgments of this Court in Joginder Singh v. State of Haryana, 1998 1 SCT 795; Hazura Singh v. State of Punjab and another,2003 4 RSJ 336 and Nasib Singh v. The State of Punjab and another, 1999 4 SCT 233