KUMARI SUNITA SINGH; AWDHESH KUMAR; SUDHA SHANKAR TIWARY; VIJAY SHANKAR TIWARY; KANCHAN BALA GOSWAMI; MANJU KUMARI SHARMA; BABITA KUMARI @ BABITA SINHA; AMRESH KUMAR SHRIVASTAVA; ANIL KUMAR SINGH; FEDERATION OF C W C AND J J B MEMBER OF BIHAR Vs. STATE OF BIHAR THROUGH CHIEF SECRETARY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard Mr. Rajendra Narayan, learned Senior Advocate, and Mr. Prabhakar Singh, learned Advocate, appearing on behalf of the petitioners. The State is heard through Mr. P.N. Shahi, learned AAG-6, Mr. Sunil Kumar Mandal, learned SC-3, and learned AC to SC-10.

(2.) These batch of writ petitions have primarily been filed for declaration of Rules 4, 5, 15 and 16 of the Bihar Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Rules, 2017 (hereinafter referred to as the Rules of 2017) as ultra vires on the ground that the State Government has travelled beyond its competence in framing such clauses in the Rules of 2017, referred to above.

(3.) It may not be necessary for us to recount the status of the writ-petitioners and their respective grievances for the reason that the attack is primarily on the vires of the aforesaid clauses of the Rules of 2017; though all the petitioners in the aforesaid writ petitions are either the members of the Child Welfare Committee or Juvenile Justice Board, whose appointments were made under the erstwhile Rules of 2012 and 2015. As such, they have prayed for being allowed to continue on such posts in the Juvenile Justice Board or the Child Welfare Committee till the age of sixty five (65) years or of giving remuneration to them as per the rules made by the Government as well as for payment of arrears of salary. It may not be necessary for us to deal with their respective grievances and prayers, for the reason that the issues would stand resolved by noticing the arguments on vires of the clauses of the Rules of 2017 and deciding the aforesaid core issue.