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MANOJ MISRA, PRASANNA B. VARALE
State of Kerala – Appellant
Versus
M. Vijayakumar – Respondent
| Table of Content |
|---|
| 1. differential rates on da/dr are challenged. (Para 4 , 11 , 12) |
| 2. no rational basis for differential treatment. (Para 8 , 18 , 21 , 26) |
| 3. classification must meet twin tests of article 14. (Para 22 , 24 , 25) |
| 4. appeals dismissed; high court's ruling upheld. (Para 29) |
JUDGMENT :
MANOJ MISRA, J.
1. Leave granted.
2. These two appeals impugn a common judgment and order of the High Court of Kerala at Ernakulam1[The High Court] dated 22.11.2022 passed in Writ Appeal Nos.131 and 202 of 2022 which arose from W.P. (C) No.12062 of 2021 and W.P. (C) No.6411 of 2021. As these appeals impugn a common judgment, they were heard together and are being decided by a common judgment.
ISSUE
3. The short question posited for our consideration in these appeals is: If dearness allowance2[DA] and dearness relief3[DR] are to be added on salary and pension payable to serving employees and retired employees, respectively, whether there could be a higher rate for enhancement of DA than what it is for DR?
FACTS
4. Retired employees of Kerala State Road Transport Corporation4[KSRTC] filed a writ petition questioning the lower rate fixed for enhancement of DR on pension than what was fixed for enha
Differential rates of dearness allowance and relief for serving employees and pensioners are discriminatory and violate Article 14 of the Constitution as both are similarly affected by inflation.
Point of law: The phrase “equality before the law” contains declaration of equality of civil rights of all persons within territories of India.
The court affirmed that dearness allowance for pensioners is a statutory right under Rule 20A and cannot be altered by administrative orders, emphasizing the finality of judicial decisions.
The court affirmed that the right to receive Dearness Allowance is legally enforceable under Article 21, linking it to human dignity, and rejected the State's financial incapacity as a valid defense ....
The judgment emphasizes that the classification of pensioners for revised pension must be based on a rational principle with a nexus to the object sought to be achieved, and any arbitrary classificat....
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