Recovery of excess payments from employees without their fault violates principles of equity and fairness, especially when recovery occurs post-retirement and after a significant period.

Order :

FARJAND ALI, J.

1. By way of filing this S.B. Civil Writ Petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, the petitioner has assailed the legality of the impugned letters dated 31.03.2015 and 07.07.2014 issued by the officials of Jodhpur Vidhyut Vitran Nigam Limited, whereby an amount of Rs. 2,08,517/- has been deducted from the petitioner’s gratuity towards alleged excess payment on account of wrong pay fixation. The grievance of the petitioner is that such recovery is wholly arbitrary and illegal, and therefore, the petitioner seeks quashing of the impugned communications and a direction to the respondent-authorities to release the deducted gratuity amount along with applicable interest.

2. That the petitioner, a permanent resident of District Churu, was appointed on muster-roll basis in the respondent department on 01.01.1972 and his services were thereafter converted from casual labour to Work-Charged Helper-II vide Order dated 10.04.1973, joining as Helper-II in the pay scale of 240-5-280-7-378 w.e.f. 01.04.1974; his pay was subsequently fixed in the revised pay scales of Rs. 400-6- 430-10-550-15-640 w.e.f. 01.04.1980 and 01.04.1983, and he was later granted the benefit of the revised pay scale of 1987 w.e.f. 01.09.1986 in the scale of Rs. 730-10-850-15- 1000-20-1200-25-1250 with his pay fixed at Rs. 970/-; the petitioner was thereafter promoted to Helper-I vide Order dated 05.11.1988 in the pay scale of 820-10-850-15-1000- 20-1200-25-1400-30-1520 with his pay fixed at Rs. 1000/- as on 18.11.1988, and his pay was later fixed in the revised State pay scale of Rs. 800-1205 at Rs. 1190/- as on 27.05.1990, followed by benefit of revised fixation for AGI due to the strike period of May–July 1992; upon completion of 18 years of service, he was granted selection grade vide Order dated 14.10.1992 in the pay scale of Rs. 950-20-1150-25-1400-30-1640-40-1680 w.e.f. 01.04.1992 with his pay fixed at Rs. 1,350/-, and it was directed that further fixation on promotion to Grade-II would not be allowed; later, based on the recommendation of a committee, he was promoted to S.S.A.-II vide Order dated 30.09.1994 in the pay scale of Rs. 1025-25-1100-30-1640-40-1800 with pay fixed at Rs. 1,400/- as on 01.04.1992 and effective from 11.10.1994, and was thereafter promoted to S.S.A.-I vide Order dated 23.10.2003 in the pay scale of Rs. 4000-100- 6000; on further recommendation of the selection committee, he was promoted to S.S.O.-I vide Order dated 20.10.2012 in PB-1 5200-20200 with Grade Pay of Rs. 2800/-, later modified vide Order dated 02.01.2013 granting Grade Pay of Rs. 3200/- applicable to technical employees, and his basic pay was fixed at Rs. 16,600/- as on 29.10.2012; he was also extended the benefit of the 6th Pay Commission w.e.f. 01.01.2006 with his pay fixed at Rs. 12,820/- and thereafter at Rs. 18,000/- as on 01.07.2013; after attaining the age of superannuation, he retired from the post of S.S.O.-I on 31.07.2014, and his retiral benefits were released except that he later came to know that Rs. 2,08,517/- had been deducted from his gratuity towards alleged excess salary paid to him due to wrong pay fixation from 1988-89 till 2014-15, as reflected in the Gratuity Payment Order dated 19.12.2014; the petitioner thereafter repeatedly approached the authorities and also sought information under the RTI Act, whereupon vide communication dated 31.03.2015, he was informed that the deduction had been made pursuant to the Accounts Officer’s letter dated 07.07.2014 and on the ground that after regularization of the strike period, his pay had been wro