DEVENDRA TIWARY Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The present writ petition has been filed for quashing the order dtd. 27/9/2021, issued by the Executive Engineer, Command Area Development Division, Bettiah whereby and whereunder a sum of Rs.6,42,263.00 has been directed to be recovered from the gratuity amount of the petitioner, on account of alleged excess salary paid to the petitioner, for the period 25/8/1983 to 31/10/2020.

(2.) The brief facts of the case, according to the petitioner, are that the petitioner was working as Correspondence Clerk on daily wages against sanctioned vacant post in the office of the Executive Engineer, Gandak Area Development Division, Bagaha, Bettiah with effect from 25/8/1983, whereafter he along with others had approached this Court by filing a writ petition, bearing CWJC No.4587 of 1989, inter alia praying therein to direct the respondents to regularize their services, which was allowed by a judgment dtd. 18/2/1991, however, the same was challenged by the Gandak Command Area Development Division by filing an appeal, bearing LPA No.32 of 1991 but the same was dismissed by an order dtd. 17/2/1993, which in turn was challenged before the Hon'ble Apex Court in S.L.P. (Civil) No. 13250 of 1993, nonetheless, the same was also dismissed by an order dtd. 17/9/1993. The petitioner was then appointed, vide memo dtd. 7/10/1993 and his services were regularized on the post of Correspondence Clerk with effect from 25/8/1983.

(3.) Thereafter, the service book of the petitioner and others was opened and in the service book of the petitioner, the date of first joining of the petitioner on the post of correspondence clerk was mentioned as 25/8/1983, whereafter the Executive Engineer, Gandak Command Area Development Division, Bettiah had fixed the salary of the petitioner in the replacement scale and paid the annual increment from the year 1983 onwards, in pursuance to letter dtd. 13/8/1999, by issuing an office order dtd. 31/12/2001. Nonetheless, the petitioner was not paid salary for the period 25/8/1983 to 6/10/1993, hence he had filed a writ petition, bearing CWJC No.12142 of 2010, which was disposed of by a co-ordinate Bench of this Court, by an order dtd. 23/8/2010, with a direction to the Secretary, Water Resources Department to release the necessary funds for payment of salary to the petitioner and then the petitioner was paid arrears of salary for the period 25/8/1983 to 6/10/1993.