Temporary employees performing the same duties as regular employees are entitled to equal pay.

JUDGMENT :

Dinesh Mehta, J.

1. The present writ petitions have been filed claiming the following reliefs:

"(a) By an appropriate writ, order or direction in the nature thereof, the respondents No. 1 to 6, may kindly be directed to regularise services of the petitioners on permanent basis on the post of Veterinary Officers, by taking into account their services rendered on the post since year 2013 and on the basis of written test passed by them, conducted by the respondent RPSC and to grant them benefit of regular pay scale with all admissible service benefits at part with regular employees.

(b) By an appropriate writ, order or direction in the nature thereof, the respondents may kindly be restrained from dispensing with or terminating services of petitioners from the post of Veterinary Officers and petitioners be allowed to continue on the said post, with regular pay scale to the post in light of the decision of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India rendered in the case of State of Punjab & Ors. Vs. Jagjit Singh & Ors, reported in 2016 AIR (SC) 5176, in same terms.

(c) By an appropriate writ, order or direction, the writ petition filed by the petitioners may kindly be allowed in terms of decision so rendered by this Hon'ble High Court in DB Special Appeal (Writ) No. 1091/2000 titled Dr. Abhijit Sutradhar & Ors. Vs. State of Rajasthan & Ors. decided on 18.04.2002, with the same direction and petitioners may kindly be paid regular salary in same manner at par with Veterinary Officers appointee of the year 1998, who are not yet appointed through RPSC in regular cadre.

(d) By an appropriate writ, order or direction in the nature thereof, the method of selection adopted by the respondent RPSC for making selection of the Veterinary Officers against advertisement dated 02.05.2013 only on the basis of interview alone, may kindly be held to be unreasonable and illegal, consequently the respondent RPSC may kindly be directed to recommend names of petitioners for appointment on the post of Veterinary Officers, by taking into account their marks scored in the written test, against the vacancies, left unfilled in the aforesaid advertisement.

(e) And in alternate, if deemed fit, by an order, writ, order or direction, in the nature thereof, the respondent Department of Animal Husbandry, may kindly be directed to absorb services of petitioners against regular post, by taking into consideration their long services on the post and on the basis of selection process faced by the petitioners, against regular post and respondent RPSC may kindly be directed to recommend their names for regular absorption, on the ground of passing of written test conducted by the respondent RPSC.

(f) Any other appropriate order or direction, which this Hon'ble Court considers just and proper in the facts and circumstances of this, may kindly be passed in favour of the petitioners."

2. Though the petitioners have claimed regularisation also, however, after arguing for some time, Mr. Sharma, learned counsel for the petitioners, submits that he abandons such relief at this juncture and the petitioners would be satisfied if the respondents pay them amount equal to the minimum pay scale available to Veterinary Officers.

3. The facts are not in dispute that the petitioners were selected pursuant to the advertisement dated 14.03.2013, issued for filling up the post for Veterinary Officer on urgent temporary basis for a fixed sum of Rs. 16,800/- per month. In pursuance of the advertisement aforesaid, the petitioners were selected and accorded appointment vide order dated 19.09.2013 for a fixed monthly salary of Rs. 16,800/- for a period of one year or untill regularly selected candidates from Rajasthan Public Service Commission are available.

4. There is no quarrel on the fact that the petitioners are continuing as Veterinary Officers.

5. Petitioners are aggrieved because they are being paid a sum of Rs. 39,300/-, whereas the regularly selected Veterinary Officers are getting much higher s