Employees of unaided minority Schools entitled to benefits of 6th and 7th CPC as per the judgments and orders of the Court.

JUDGMENT

Jyoti Singh, J. (Oral)--Present writ petition has been filed seeking the following reliefs:

"a) Issue a writ of mandamus, order or direction, directing the Respondent No. 2 & 3 to implement the speaking order dated 7.9.2022 passed by the Respondent No.1 and forthwith release the arrears along with interest;

b) Issue a writ of mandamus, order or direction, directing the Respondent No. 2 and 3 to release the arrears towards TA in terms of 6th & 7th CPC, arrears towards DA and balance salary of 40% for the period April 2020 to February 2021 along with interest;

c) pass such other order or orders as this Hon'ble Court may deem fit and proper in the facts and circumstances of the present case."

2. Petitioner was appointed as DTP Operator on 15.07.1996 and superannuated w.e.f. 31.08.2021. It is the case of the Petitioner that at the time of his retirement, the terminal/retiral benefits were not released to the Petitioner and even the arrears of pay revision under the 6th and 7th Pay Commissions have not been released to him.

3. Petitioner had earlier filed a writ petition being W.P.(C) No.12071/2021 in this Court, which was disposed of vide order dated 26.10.2021, directing Respondent No. 1/Directorate of Education to treat the petition as a representation and dispose of the same. Respondent No. 1 considered the representation and by a speaking order dated 07.09.2022 directed the School/Guru Harkrishan Public School (Respondents No. 2 and 3) herein to clear the arrears of Rs.30,52,104/- within 15 days from the receipt of the order.

4. Pursuant to the order passed by the Directorate, the School issued eight post-dated cheques starting from July, 2022 and ending in February, 2023 for amounts totalling to Rs.15,39,093/-, towards Gratuity and Leave Encashment. Petitioner, thereafter, wrote to Respondent No. 1 pointing out that certain arrears towards TA/DA and 40% salary had not been released. Since the balance amount was not released by the School, Petitioner was compelled to file the present writ petition.

5. Counsel for the Petitioner contends that it is an obligation of the School to release the arrears of the 6th and 7th CPC pay revisions as well as the TA/DA and 40% balance salary for the period April, 2020 to February, 2021. Despite the direction of Respondent No. 1, the School has failed to release the complete amounts to the Petitioner constraining him to resort to litigation. Petitioner is in dire need of money for the marriage expenses of his daughter in the near future.

6. It is also contended that the case of the Petitioner is covered on all four corners by the judgment of this Court in Shikha Sharma v. Guru Harkrishan Public School & Ors., 2021 SCC OnLine Del 5011 and therefore, the arrears be released to the Petitioner along with interest.

7. Having heard the learned counsels for the parties, this Court finds merit in the contention of the Petitioner that the relief sought in the present writ petition is covered by the judgment in Shikha Sharma (supra), relevant passages from which are as follows:

"26. So, it is clear that the pay and allowances of the employees of unaided minority Schools cannot be less than those of the employees of the Government run Schools. There is no dispute that the benefits of 6th and 7th CPC have been given to the employees of the Government run Schools. If that be so, the employees of the unaided minority Schools are also entitled to get the benefits of the recommendations as made by the 6th and 7th CPC reports. So, this plea of Mr. Abinash Kumar Mishra is liable to be rejected. The plea of Mr. Mishra, that till such time the DoE grants approval to the Schools to collect the arrears of fees, the Schools must not be directed to pay the benefits of 7th CPC is concerned, the same is unmerited. The employees are entitled to equal pay and other benefits, by operation of Section 10 of the DSE Act, in other words, by operation of law, the said benefits are payable. The same does not pre-supp