IMPORTANT POINT
The central legal point established in the judgment is the entitlement of employees of unaided minority schools to the benefits of the 6th and 7th CPC, as well as the compliance and implementation of previous court judgments and directions.

JUDGMENT

Tushar Rao Gedela, J. (Oral)

[The proceeding has been conducted through Hybrid mode]

CM APPL. 15557/2024 (for exemption)

1. Exemption is allowed, subject to all just exceptions.

2. The application stands disposed of.

W.P.(C) 3779/2024

3. This is a writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, 1950, seeking inter alia the following reliefs:

"(a) Issue a writ of mandamus, order or direction, directing the Respondent No. 1 & 2 to release the terminal benefits i.e. gratuity and leave encashment in terms of 6th & 7th CPC, along with interest till realization;

b) Issue a writ of mandamus, order or direction, directing the Respondent No.3 to initiate action against the Respondent Nos. 1 & 2 for withholding the terminal benefits of the Petitioner without any rhyme and reason;

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."

4. Issue Notice.

5. Notice is accepted by Mr. Abinash K. Mishra, learned counsel appearing for respondent No.1 and by Ms. Latika Choudhury, learned counsel appearing for respondent No.2.

6. Mr. Mishra, learned counsel appearing for respondent No.1 very fairly submits that the issue raised in the present petition is squarely covered by the judgment of the Co-ordinate Bench of this Court in W.P.(C) 14597/2022 captioned as "Jasvinder Singh vs. Directorate of Education & Ors.".

7. He also relies upon the judgment of another Co-ordinate Bench of this Court in "Shikha Sharma vs. Guru Harkishan Public School, reported in 2021 SCC OnLine Del 5011".

8. The judgment rendered by the Co-ordinate Bench of this Court in Shikha Sharma (supra) has been succinctly noted in para 5 of the judgment passed in Jasvinder Singh (supra). The same is extracted hereunder:

"5. Having heard the counsels appearing for both parties, this Court is of the opinion that the instant petition is squarely covered by Shikha Sharma (Supra), relevant paragraphs of the same are reproduced herein:

"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 OF THE CODE OF CIVIL PROCEDURE, 1908 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-suppose the approval being granted by the Director to the Schools to claim higher fee or arrears thereof.

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28. Following the aforesaid judgment, even this Court in the case pertaining to grant of arrears of salary also granted similar reliefs to the petitioners in Shashi Kiran v. Siddharth International Public School, W.P.(C) No. 2734/2021; Rambir Singh Malik v. Greenfields Public School, W.P.(C) 9486/2020; and Inderpreet Kaur v. Directorate of Education, W.P.(C) 4127/2020. This Court in a recent judgment in the case of Amrita Pritam v. S.S. Mota Singh Junior Model School, W.P.(C) 1335/2019 dated September 22, 2021 has granted the benefits of the 7th CPC along with arrears to the petitioners therein. I may state here that an appeal has been preferred against the said judgment being S.S. Mota Singh Junior Model School v. Directorate of Education, Government of NCT of Delhi, LPA 399/2021, however, the Division Bench has not stayed operation of the judgment in W.P.(C) 1335/2019 dated September 22, 2021. That apart, I find de