JUDGMENT :

HARISH KUMAR, J.

We have heard Mr. Siya Ram Shahi, learned counsel for the appellants, Mr. Y.V Giri, learned senior counsel for the National Institute of Technology, Patna and Mr. Brajesh Kumar Pandey, learned counsel for the Union of India.

2. The present intra-court appeal is preferred against the order/judgment dated 29.11.2024 passed by the learned Single Judge in CWJC No. 13044 of 2014, whereby and whereunder the claim of the writ petitioners for extending benefit of Old Pension Scheme came to be rejected.

3. The facts, in brief, are that the petitioners were duly appointed against Class III and Class IV post under the Centre for Water Resources Studies (in short ‘CWRS’) sometime in the year 1983 and 1984. The CWRS as then was a self financing research organisation having its head of the department Civil Engineering, Patna University. In the meeting of the Centre Management Committee, Patna University, held on 04.09.1986 in the Chairmanship of the Principal, Bihar College of Engineering, Patna, it was decided to provide regular pay scale to the petitioners.

4. Subsequently, while the petitioners were working in Class III and Class IV posts on the recommendation of the Committee constituted by the Senate and Syndicate as also on the recommendation of the Committee constituted by the Vice Chancellor, Patna University and in the light of the letters of the State Government as well as the order of the Court, the services of the petitioners were duly absorbed from the date of their joining in the respective pay scale of Class III and Class IV post vide office order dated 28.01.2004 (Annexure-5 to the writ petition). The writ petitioner nos. 1 and 2 have been posted in the Bihar College of Engineering, Patna as Routine Clerk against the post of Accountant and Lab Assistant respectively. Similarly, the writ petitioner Nos. 3 and 4 have been posted as Lab Attendant and Daftari. In pursuance of the aforesaid letter of absorption, the petitioners submitted their joining on 29.01.2004. In the meantime, another development took place and vide notification dated 28.01.2004 issued by the Ministry of Human Resources Development, Bihar College of Engineering, Patna has been taken over as fully funded institute of the Central Government and rechristen as National Institute of Technology, Patna with immediate effect. Consequent upon said take over CWRS, Bihar College of Engineering Patna has also been taken over.

5. Notwithstanding the aforesaid facts, when the petitioners have been deprived from payment of current salary as well as arrear thereof, the petitioners and one another identically situated person filed CWJC No. 8087 of 2004 seeking a direction, inter alia, to accept the joining of the petitioners whose services have been absorbed by the office order dated 28.01.2004 and further to extend salary from 29.01.2004 on account of their absorption in terms with office order dated 28.01.2004.

6. The writ petition filed by the petitioners was finally allowed vide order dated 09.01.2006 with a direction to the National Institute of Technology to take over the services of the petitioners on their respective posts and utilize their services on regular basis and pay their remuneration, including arrears of pay, in accordance with law. The National Institute of Technology, Patna aggrieved with the order of the learned Single Judge has preferred LPA No. 245 of 2006. However, the same stood dismissed on 28.01.2006. Thereupon both the orders of the learned Single Judge as well as the learned Division Bench of this Court were questioned in SLP (Civil) No. 19811 of 2006 before the Hon’ble Supreme Court by the National Institute of Technology, Patna and finally the said SLP has been disposed off on 03.03.2008 in terms of the compromise arrived between the parties. In the light of the order of the Hon’ble Supreme Court and in terms of the compromise arrived between the parties, the petitioners were being treated as the employees of the National