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IN THE HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR
Amitendra Kishore Prasad, J.
Seeta Thakur Wd/o Ramesh Kumar Thakur - Petitioner
Versus
State of
WPS No. 5784 of 2022, WPS No. 5104 of 2023
Decided On :
(A) Banking Regulations Act, 1959 - Section 15
(D)(b) - Chhattisgarh Cooperative Societies Act, 1960 - Sections 2(d-i), 55(1), and 95(3) - Denial of annual increments to employees of a cooperative bank - The petitioners challenged the legality of orders restricting annual increments based on performance evaluations, asserting that such restrictions violate statutory service rules and principles of natural justice. (Paras 6, 11, 16, 29)
(B) Service Rules - Rule 21(2) - The court held that annual increments are an accrued right and cannot be denied without due process or justification. (Paras 20, 30)
(C) Natural Justice - The court emphasized the necessity of adhering to procedural requirements, including the right to a hearing before altering service conditions. (Paras 21, 34)
Facts of the case:
The petitioners, employees of a cooperative bank, were denied annual increments effective from 01.04.2021 based on orders issued by the Registrar of Cooperative Societies, which were challenged for being contrary to statutory provisions and service rules.
Findings of Court:
The court found the impugned orders to be in violation of statutory requirements and quashed them, ordering the release of annual increments to the petitioners.
Issues: The main issues included the legality of the orders restricting annual increments and the adherence to statutory procedures in amending service conditions.
Ratio Decidendi: The court ruled that the denial of annual increments was unlawful as it contravened established service rules and lacked procedural fairness.
Result: Writ petitions allowed; orders quashed.
Order :
(Amitendra Kishore Prasad, J.)
1. Heard Mr. Varun Sharma, learned counsel for the petitioners in WPS Nos.5784/2022, 5104/2023, 5671/2023, 5736/2023 & 2171/2024 and Mr. Gagan Tiwari, learned counsel for the petitioner in WPS No.2478/2024. Also heard Mr. Akhilesh Kumar, learned Government Advocate appearing for the State as well as Mr. Sandeep Dubey, learned counsel appearing for the respondent-Bank.
2. Since common question is involved in these writ petitions, they are clubbed together heard together and are being disposed of by this common order.
3. The petitioners in these batch of writ petitions are employees of the District Co-operative Central Bank Limited, Raipur (in short, “the Bank”) in different posts; such as, Branch Manager, Additional Assistant Manager, Society Manager, Accountant, Assistant Accountant, Clerk and Peon etc. The common grievance in these batch of writ petitions is in respect of denial/stoppage of annual increments to the petitioners w.e.f. 01.04.2021.
4. For the sake of convenience, WPS No.5671/2023 is being treated as the lead case.
5. In WPS No.5671/2023, the petitioners have sought for following relief(s):-
“i. To kindly call for the records of the case from the Respondents.
ii. To kindly set aside and quash the impugned order dated 15.03.2023 (Annexure P/1) issued by the Respondent no.2/Registrar Cooperative Societies, Chhattisgarh.
iii. To kindly set aside and quash the impugned order dated 06.01.2020 (Annexure P/1A) issued by the Respondent no.2/Registrar, Cooperative Societies so far it relates to restricting the right of the Petitioners to receive annual increments.
iv. To kindly set aside and quash the Clause 7 of the impugned order dated 22.01.2020 (Annexure P/2) issued by the Respondent no.4/District Central Cooperative Bank Limited.
v. To kindly direct the Respondents not to alter the service conditions of the Petitioners and release the annual increments of the Petitioner w.e.f. 01.04.2021 with arrears and penal interest @ 10% due to illegal withholding of the same.
vi. To kindly make any other order that may be deemed fit and just in the facts and circumstances of the case including awarding of the costs to the petitioner from the respondent no.2.”
6. Brief facts of all the cases, in a nutshell, are that the petitioners are working employees of respondent-Bank since past several decades without any blemish and to the satisfaction of the authorities. The petitioners are holding the posts of Branch Manager, Additional Assistant Manager, Society Manager, Accountant, Assistant Accountant, Clerk and Peon etc. respectively. Respondent No.4 is a "Cooperative Bank" as defined under Section 15(D)(b) of the Banking Regulations Act, 1959 as well as Section 2(d-i) of the Chhattisgarh Cooperative Societies Act, 1960 (in short, “the Act”). The service conditions of the petitioners are governed through the Chhattisgarh Cooperative Central Bank Employees Services (Terms of Employment and Working Conditions) Rules 1982 (in short, “the Service Rules”). The aforesaid Service Rules have been issued by the Registrar under Section 55(1) of the Act. In the year 2016, based on the suggestions received from various quarters, including National Federation of State Cooperative Banks (in short, ‘NAFSCOB’), Chairman, National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (in short, ‘NABARD’) constituted "Committee for a Assessment of Human Resources of STCCS in the Post CBS Environment" under Chairmanship of Shri R. Amalorpavanathan, Deputy Managing Director, NABARD (in short, “the APN Committee”). The aforesaid Committee vide letter dated 10.10.2017 submitted its report and recommended that the cost effective measures are to be taken by the Cooperative Banks, but nowhere recommended that the annual increments of the existing employees be withheld or denied based upon their performance. Since the pay-scale of the employees of the Bank needed revision on the basis of Price Index Pay Scale, the Registrar Cooperative Societies
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