ZARDAR KHAN Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioners have filed this writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, seeking direction against the respondents to enhance the superannuation age of the petitioners upto 60 years, and accordingly to pay all consequential benefits.

(2.) IT is submitted by the learned counsel Mr. Shobhit Vyas for the petitioners that the petitioner No.1 was working as the Compositor, and the petitioner No.2 was working as the Assistant Machine Operator with the respondent No.3 -State Cooperative Press Ltd., and both were to retire on 30th June, 2014 on attaining the age of superannuation. He further submitted that the respondent No.2 -Registrar had issued a Circular dated 17/9/2008 -Annexure -13, directing all the Cooperative Societies including the respondent No.3 to increase the age of superannuation from 58 to 60, if they had made profits in the last three years, and if the strength of existing employees did not exceed the sanctioned strength, however the respondent No.3 has not taken any decision on the said Circular, and was ought to retire the petitioners on their attaining the age of superannuation. He further submitted that the petitioners having approached this Court, they were protected vide the order dated 20/6/2014 by directing the respondents society to continue the petitioners in service.

(3.) HOWEVER , the learned counsel Mr. A.K. Pareek for the respondent No.3, placing reliance on the reply filed by him, submitted that the petition against the respondent No.3 was not maintainable, the respondent No.3 being not the State within the meaning of Article 12 of the Constitution of India. He further submitted that though the respondent No.3 has shown profits in the annual report, the auditors had raised the objection to the effect that the said profit was wrongly shown and in fact the respondent No.3 was running into loss. The learned counsel thereafter has submitted that the petitioners are also not having knowledge of the latest technology in printing, and therefore also office has not desirous to continue them after they having reached the age of superannuation.