JUDGMENT :

Rabindranath Samanta, J :

1. Challenge in this writ petition is against an order passed by the Director of Mass Education Extension, West Bengal by which the petitioner’s representation seeking higher scale of pay was rejected.

2. Background facts giving rise to the writ petition may succinctly be stated as follows:

The Calcutta Deaf and Dumb School is an educational institution which imparts education to the hearing impaired students up to Secondary School leaving level. The petitioner Promit Kumar Choudhury was appointed as an Accountant in the school on 18th January, 1999 at the scale of pay of Rs. 1040-1920/-and other allowances. After completion of probation period, the governing body of the school confirmed his service and the Director, Mass Education Extension approved his appointment in the aforesaid scale of pay of Rs. 1040-1920/-. The scale of pay of Rs. 1040-1920/-was allowed to the incumbents holding the post of Junior Clerk in other sponsored institutions. Long after his appointment was approved by the Director of Mass Education Extension, the petitioner came to know that in other similar sponsored institutions, the incumbents holding the post of Accountant are fetching higher scale of pay of Rs. 4000-8850/-. Like the Calcutta Deaf and Dumb School, other sponsored schools namely, Helen Keller Badhir Vidyalaya, Sramik Vidyapith, Banipur State Welfare Home are under the Mass Education Extension Directorate, Government of West Bengal. In Sramik Vidyapith, the Head Clerk/Senior Clerk got the scale of pay of Rs. 4000-8850/-corresponding to the old school of pay of Rs. 1260-2610/-. Similarly, the Head Clerk and the Upper Division Clerk at Banipur State Welfare Home were allowed pay scale of Rs. 4000-8850/-corresponding to the old scale of pay of Rs. 1260-2610/-. In Bangiya Sahitya Parishad under the control of the Department of Mass Education Extension and Library services, the Accountant-cum-Chief Clerk was allowed to scale of pay of Rs. 1260-2610/-corresponding to new scale of pay of Rs.4000-8850/-whereas the petitioner holding the post of Accountant and discharging the similar duties was allowed the scale of pay of Rs. 1040-1920/-corresponding to new scale of pay of Rs. 3350-6250/-. The petitioner also came to know that scale of pay of the Head Clerk-cum-Accountant of the Government School for Blind at Cooch Behar and Raiganj Deaf and Dumb School under the Social Welfare Department was at Rs. 380-910/-which was revised to the corresponding old scale of pay of Rs. 1260-2610/-.

Considering the nature of duties discharged by the Accountant or Head Clerk-cum-Cashier/Head Clerk-cum-Accountant, the Director, Mass Education Extension requested the Department of Mass Education Extension to grant scale of pay of Rs. 4000-8850/-to the incumbents holdings such posts. The Director, Mass Education Extension also informed the Department of Mass Education by Office Note dated 13th April, 2004 that in some schools, incumbents holding the same post were getting pay scale of Rs. 4000-8850/-meant for Upper Division Clerks. Getting no response to the communications made by him, the Director of Mass Education Extension by way of a reminder dated 6th September, 2005 requested the Joint Secretary to the Government of West Bengal, Department of Mass Education Extension to extend the aforesaid higher scale to the incumbents as above. Subsequently, by a letter dated 14th November, 2007, the Deputy Director of Mass Education Extension by an office note recommended for extending the benefit of the scale of pay of Rs. 4000-8850/-to the incumbents holding the post of Accountant, Head Clerk-cum-Cashier, etc. Under such circumstances, the petitioner had reason to believe that the department would grant the scale of pay of Rs. 4000-8850/-to him.

One Samir Roy, the Head Clerk-cum-Accountant of Hellen Keller Badhir Vidyalaya, by moving a writ application being WP No. 30346(W) of 2008 before this court sought for the scale of Rs. 40008850/-. By an