DWARIKA NATH PANDEY Vs. STATE OF JHARKHAND

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner has approached this Hon'ble Court with the following prayers:-

(2.) The petitioners along with other teachers were granted promotions vide order issued under memo No.9081 dated 02.11.1985 by the Establishment Committee on 08.10.1985. In pursuance of the office order under memo No.1756 dated 19.07.1996 upon fixation of pay scale, amongst others, of Birju Singh, on promotion, anomaly arose in the fixation of pay scale of the petitioners and accordingly by Office-order under Memo No. 508 dated 17.03.2006, the pay scale of the petitioner No.2 was re-fixed at Rs. 6500-10500/- with effect from 19.07.1996 after removing such anomalies. Likewise, by office order issued under memo no. 2707 dated 30.11.2006, the pay scale of the petitioner Nos. 10 and 11, namely, Arun Kumar Sinha and Hrishi Narayan Dubey were fixed at Rs.6500-10500/- with effect from 04.11.1985 and 08.11.1985 in order to remove anomalies and on the basis of Para-9 to Schedule-4 of the Resolution No.660 dated 08.02.1999. Similarly, in course of removal of anomalies due to fixation of pay scale of Birju Singh, the pay scale of the remaining petitioners along with others so already fixed, were re-fixed at Rs.6500-10500/- since 19.07.1996 in terms of Office Order issued under Memo No. 2653 dated 31.12.2010. It is pertinent to mention here that Resolution issued under Letter No. 660(F/2) dated 08.02.1999 by the Finance Department of the then Government of Bihar provides the procedure for fixation of revised pay scale and the case of the petitioners were considered accordingly at the time of fixation of their respective pay scale. Office order under Memo No. 2225 dated 24.12.2008 the then D.S.E., Garhwa in terms of decision taken by the Establishment Committee and different judgments, granted pay scale to 13 teachers including the petitioners. It is the case of the petitioner that by the impugned order issued under memo No. 330 dated 14.03.2013, the respondent No. 3 purportedly relying upon the alleged enquiry report, cancelled the pay-scale of the petitioners already determined and fixed in respect of the petitioners and ordered for recovery of the alleged excess amount from them and hence, this writ petition.

(3.) Mr. A.K. Sahni, learned Counsel for the petitioners strenuously urged that the impugned order dated 14.03.2013, issued under Memo No. 330 (Annexure-6), cancelling the fixation of payscale of the petitioners and direction for recovery of the alleged excess amount from their retiral benefits, is illegal, arbitrary and against the settled principles of law. Learned counsel further argued that by letter No. 4388 dated 06.07.2009, the Chief Secretary of the then Government of Bihar issued directions in compliance of the judgment dated 25.06.2009 passed by this Hon'ble Court in W.P.(S). No. 2451 of 2003 (Nand Lal Pandit Vs. the State of Jharkhand & Ors.) to observe the principles of natural justice and not to realize any amount in the garb of excess amount.