IMPORTANT POINTS
On regularization the period of service rendered as daily wager would be counted as continuous service for Payment of Gratuity Act.
State should not contest payment of gratuity to employee on technical grounds particularly when it took 22 years to regularize the service.

JUDGMENT

Abhay Manohar Sapre, J.

1. This appeal is directed against the final judgment and order dated 01.08.2014 passed by the High Court of Chhattisgarh at Bilaspur in Writ Appeal No.240 of 2014 whereby the Division Bench of the High Court dismissed the appeal filed by the appellant herein and affirmed the judgment and order dated 16.12.2013 passed by the Single Judge of the High Court in Writ Petition(L) No.178 of 2013 by which the Single Judge allowed the petition preferred by the respondents herein and set aside the orders of the Controlling Authority and Appellate Authority by which the claim of the appellant herein of gratuity for the period from 01.04.1986 to 23.05.2008 was allowed.

2. Few relevant facts need mention to appreciate the short controversy involved in the appeal.

3. The appellant was appointed as daily wager on 01.04.1986 by the Water Resources Department of the State of Chhattisgarh and was attached to the office of SDO (E/M) Light Machinery Tubewell & Gage Sub-Division Sakri, P.S. Charkarbhata, District Baster (CG). Subsequently, the services of the appellant were regularized on work charge establishment to the post of Pump Operator by order dated 06.05.2008. After attaining the age of superannuation, the appellant retired on 30.07.2011.

4. The appellant was, however, not paid the gratuity amount by the State which, according to him, was payable to him after his retirement. Therefore, the appellant filed an application before the Controlling Authority under the Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972 (hereinafter referred to as “the Act”) and prayed for payment of gratuity amount to him in accordance with the provisions of the Act.

5. By order dated 27.03.2012, the Controlling Authority allowed the application and held that the appellant is entitled to claim gratuity amount from the State for the services rendered by him. It was further held that the appellant has in all rendered 25 years and 3 months of service (22 years and 1 month as daily wager and 3 years and 2 months as regular work charge employee) and hence rendered the required years of qualified service as per the requirements of the Act.

6. The State felt aggrieved and filed appeal before the specified Appellate Authority under the Act. By order dated 30.01.2013, the Appellate Court dismissed the appeal filed by the State and affirmed the order of the Controlling Authority.

7. The State pursued the matter and filed Writ Petition No.178/2013 against the order passed by the Appellate Authority in the High Court of Chhattisgarh at Bilaspur. The Single Judge of the High Court, by order dated 16.12.2013 allowed the writ petition and set aside the orders of the Controlling Authority and the Appellate Authority.

8. The appellant herein (employee) felt aggrieved by the order of the Single Judge and filed writ appeal before the Division Bench. By impugned judgment, the Division Bench dismissed the appellant's appeal and upheld the order passed by the Single Judge, which has given rise to filing of the appeal by way of special leave by the employee concerned in this Court.

9. The short question, which arises for consideration in this appeal, is whether the High Court (Single Judge/Division Bench) was justified in holding that the appellant (employee) was not entitled to claim gratuity from the State (respondent herein) for the services rendered by him or in other words, the question arises for consideration is whether the appellant can be held to have rendered qualified service, i.e., continuous service as specified in Section 2(e) read with Section 2A of the Act so as to make him eligible to claim gratuity, as provided under the Act, from the State.

10. Heard Mr. Kiran Kumar Jaipuriar, learned counsel for the appellant and Mr. Aniruddha P. Mayee, learned counsel for the respondents.

11. Having heard the learned counsel for the parties and on perusal of the record of the case, we are inclined to allow the appeal and while setting aside the orders of the High Court