NARAYAN JHA Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard counsel for the parties.

(2.) The petitioner retired as Panchayat Sevak with, effect from 28th February. 1989. Earlier, he was given second time bound promotion with effect from 1-4-1984, Initially provisional pension of Rs. 813/- was being paid to the petitioner but that was subsequently stopped. A notice was issued to the petitioner to deposit a sum of Rs. 5,000/-, Being the excess paid to him for not completing the schemes undertaken by him though he had been paid in respect thereof. The petitioner was also required to refund a sum Rs. 48.000/- and odd. which, it is said, was received by him by grant of promotion increment illegally. The provisional pension which was being paid to the petitioner was also stopped.

(3.) So far as the question of refund of amount paid to the petitioner on account of grant of second time bound promotion is concerned, counsel for the petitioner submits that there is no justification for directing the petitioner to refund that amount. The State granted him that increment, and he simply accepted it. He was not at fault. Under the rules after attainding the age of 50 a Government servant could be exempted from the requirement of passing nothing and drafting examination. The petitioner had attained the age of 50 and, therefore, if the Government granted him time bound promotion, and gave him the benefit of higher scale, that should be deemed to be an examption in favour of the petitioner from passing the departmental examination, which was within the authority of the Government to grant. In any event, since the payment said to have been wrongly made, was hot on account of either mistake or deliberate conduct on the part of the petitioner, he cannot be penalised, particularly at a stage after he has retired from service;