UNION OF INDIA Vs. GURMUKH SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) C.M. No. 13049 of 2017 Application is allowed. Affidavit of petitioner No.3 along with Annexures P-5 to P-7 is taken on record. CWP No. 8636 of 2017 The Union of India has preferred the writ petition against the order dated 15.11.2016 rendered by the Central Administrative Tribunal (hereinafter called as "CAT") in OA No.060/01204/2015 whereby the claim of the applicant-respondent No.1 seeking stepping up of his pay at par with his juniors namely Bihari Dass and Raksha Rani w.e.f. July, 2004 has been accepted and the arrears of pay have been confined to the period of three years prior to the filing of the OA i.e. 22.12.2015.

(2.) Mr. Namit Kumar, learned counsel appearing on behalf of the Union of India submitted that the applicant-respondent No.1 preferred the aforementioned OA claiming the relief mentioned above but the same was objected by filing a detailed written statement wherein it was specifically averred that the applicant-respondent No.1 never gave any option. In this regard, he drew attention of this Court to sub-para (iii) of Para 4 of the written statement in which FR 22(1)(a) governing the rule of option, had been extracted whereas the other applicants as per Annexures P-5 and P-6 gave their options for fixation of pay from the date of their promotion. It is in this backdrop of the matter, the respondent No.1 had been denied stepping up of pay, therefore, order of CAT is erroneous and not sustainable in the eyes of law on the following premise:-

(3.) We have heard learned counsel for the petitioners, examined the aforementioned submissions threadbare and also the order under challenge and of the view that there is no ambiguity and illegality in the order under challenge as the arguments of Mr. Namit Kumar are wholly misplaced.