PAGILLA VENKATAIAH Vs. DISTRICT COLLECTOR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) In this writ petition, the petitioner is seeking a writ of mandamus declaring the action of the respondents in not paying the salary to the petitioner from August, 2022 onwards, as illegal, arbitrary, discriminatory, unconstitutional and consequently to issue directions to the respondents to forthwith pay the salary from August, 2022 and to continue to pay the same every month on par with other employees in the Revenue Department and to pass such other order or orders.

(2.) Brief facts leading to the filing of the present writ petition are that the petitioner was appointed as a Village Revenue Officer (VRO) in the erstwhile Nalgonda District and after reorganization of the Districts, the petitioner was working under the jurisdiction of the respondent No.1. It is submitted that the State of Telangana enacted the Act No.10 of 2020, abolishing the post of VRO in the revenue department and consequently, the Government issued G.O.Ms.No.121, Finance Department, dtd. 23/7/2022, directing the District Collectors to deploy the VROs to various Departments other than the Revenue Department. It is submitted that the District Collectors hurriedly redeployed VROs to other Departments of other districts also contrary to the Presidential Order by order dtd. 1/8/2022 and the subordinate officers of the Collectors of the respective district, compelled the VROs to join the new Departments.

(3.) It is submitted that it was under in these circumstances that two VROs by name S.Sathaiah and G.Mahender approached this Court challenging the G.O.Ms.No.121, dtd. 23/7/2022 and other consequential orders and this Court, by order dtd. 4/8/2022, in I.A.No.1 of 2022 in W.P.No.31643 of 2022 has observed that 'the deployment/transfer of the petitioners shall be subject to the final outcome of the writ petition and that the petitioners shall be at liberty to utilize the options available to them for not joining the duty immediately. It is also recorded that the Learned Special Government Pleader assured the Court that the Government is not using any coercive methods to make the petitioners or any VROs to join duty as per their deployment'. It is submitted that similarly, the Telangana Village Revenue Officers' Association also filed W.P.No.31725 of 2022 challenging the very Act No.10 of 2020 and all other consequential orders including G.O.Ms.No.121, dtd. 23/7/2022 and the Division Bench of this Court, while issuing notice passed interim orders Staying the operation of G.O.Ms.No.121 dtd. 23/7/2022 prospectively observing that prima facie, the directions contained in Paragraph-3 of the G.O.Ms.No.121 are contrary to Sec. 4(1) of the Act No.10 of 2020. It is submitted that the petitioner herein is also one of the petitioners in W.P.No.31725 of 2022 and therefore, in view of the interim order granted by this Court in the said case, he did not join the other Department and is continuing in the Revenue Department. It is submitted that though the petitioner has not joined the new Department but is continuing in the Revenue Department by virtue of the interim order of this Court, the respondents are not releasing the salary from the months of August, 2022 onwards. Challenging the said action, the petitioner has filed the present writ petition.