The court affirmed that the petitioner is entitled to benefits as Workcharge Work Assistant after ten years of service, based on relevant government resolutions, ruling the denial of benefits as arbitrary.

JUDGMENT :

Hemant M. Prachchhak, J.

1. Present petition is filed by the petitioner under Article 226 of the Constitution of India with the following reliefs:-

"(A) May be pleased to Admit and Allow this Writ petition.

(B) Be pleased to issue a Writ of mandamus or any other appropriate Writ, Order or direction directing the respondents to forthwith release the following monetary benefits with 18% interest, after holding the action of the respondents in not releasing the same as arbitrary and illegal:-

(I) Arrears of pay of Workcharge Work Assistant from 1- 3-99 to 31-10-2007 after notionally promoting the petitioner as Workcharge Work Assistant w.e.f. March 1999 on completion of 10 years of service as workcharge employee and as it done in the case of junior employees to the petitioner.

(II) Revision in pension and it's arrears with revision in retirement benefits after calculation and payments as per above mentioned 22(B)(I) prayer.

(C) be pleased to issue appropriate Writ, direction or Order quashing and setting aside the communication dated 20-9-12 passed by respondent no.3 pursuant to representation dated 17-8-12 preferred by the petitioner.

(D) Pending admission hearing and final disposal of this Writ Petition, be pleased to grant ad interim relief in terms of para 22(B) of the petition.

(E) Be pleased to pass such other/further orders deemed fit in the facts and circumstances of the case.

(F) Be pleased to award the costs of the present Writ Petition from the respondents."

2. Facts of the present case are in nutshell as under:-

2.1 It is the case of the petitioner that he joined the services as Security Guard w.e.f. 21.05.1075 and he had completed ten years of continuous service on 01.10.1988. The petitioner passed the S.S.C. Examination in 1989 and he had given administrative work w.e.f. 01.09.1991 because he had cleared S.S.C. Examination. The Narmada Water Resources and Water Supply Department, State of Gujarat issued Government Resolution on 30.06.1988 and on the basis of the Government Resolution, Office Order No. 279 of 1998 was issued by respondent No. 4.

2.2 It is the case of the petitioner that the Executive Engineer, Panam Yojna Vibhag, Godhra passed Office Order No. 603 of 1998 on 02.11.1998 in favour of the petitioner on the basis of the resolution dated 30.06.1988 and Office Order No. 279 of 1998 issued by respondent No. 4. That as per the Office Order No. 603 of 1998, the petitioner resumed the duty as Workcharge w.e.f. 05.11.1998 and necessary entry was posted in the service book of the petitioner by respondent No. 3 and entry was posted to the effect that the date of appointment as Class III, Workcharge was 01.03.1989.

2.3 It is also the case of the petitioner that as per the resolution dated 30.06.1998, the scheme was to be implemented from 01.10.1988 and the arrears of pay came to be paid to the concerned employees who were made workcharge from the date of their passing of S.S.C. Examination and paid arrears considering the retrospective effect of the scheme. At the time of passing order of appointment of the petitioner as workcharge from permanent rojamdar, on 02.11.1998, no post of workcharge was specified and subsequently, he and other employees were designated as workcharge karkoon. The respondent No. 2 passed an Office Order No. 116 of 2007 directing the concerned to enter the cadre of the workcharge class III employees as workcharge karkoon in their service books. The respondent No. 1 issued resolution in the year 2006 stipulating that the workcharge employees who completed 10 years of continuous service were to be promoted as Workcharge Work Assistant. The petitioner retired on 31.10.2007 on attaining the age of superannuation. The respondent No. 3 forwarded the names of the workcharge employees including the petitioner for consideration of his case for promotion as Workcharge Work Assistant. The respondent No. 2 passed Office Order No. 275 of 2008 directing appointment of workcharge employees as Workcharge Work