2023 Supreme(P&H) 3415
IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH
M.S. RAMACHANDRA RAO, SUKHVINDER KAUR, JJ.
Ajay Kumar Singla & Ors. – Petitioners
Versus
State of Punjab & Ors. – Respondents
CWP-17064 of 2017
Decided On : 16-02-2023
Advocates Appeared:
For the Petitioner (in CWP No.17064 of 2017 and 35680 of 2019):Mr. Vikas Chatrath, Ms.Tanya Sehgal, Mr.Ujjwal Sharma, Mr.Nitin Kaushal, Mr.BPS Thakur & Mr.Abhishek Singla, Advocates.
For the Petitioners (in CWP No. 6232 of 2017):Mr. H.C. Arora, Advocate and Ms. Sunaina, Advocate.
For the Petitioner (in CWP-18118-2022, CWP-12522-2019 & CWP-13197-2020):Mr. Pardeep Singh Mirpur, Advocate.
For the Petitioner (in CWP Nos. 1681, 1696, 1713, 3332 of 2018 and 15642 of 2019):Ms. Kriteka Sheokand, Advocate.
For the Petitioner (in CWP-11187-2020, 25984 & 26291 of 2022):Mr. Jatinder Nagpal, Advocate.
For the Petitioner (in CWP-6404-2020):Mr. J.P.S. Sidhu, Advocate.
For the Petitioner (in CWP-33835-2019):Mr. Sunil Kumar Bansal, Advocate.
For the Petitioner (in CWP-35332-2019 and 20682-2020):Mr. Vishal Mittal, Advocate.
For the Petitioner (in CWP No.3579 of 2018):Mr. Ramesh Goyat, Advocate.
For the Petitioner (in CWP-6888-2018):Mr. Abhishek Singla, Advocate.
For the Petitioners(in CWP-25889-2018):Mr. M.K. Bhatnagar for Mr. S.K. Bawa, Advocates.
For the Petitioner (in CWP No. 7966 of 2019):Ms. Rajvinder Kaur, Advocate.
For the Petitioner (in CWP's 3244 & 26033 of 2018):Mr. Dilraj Singh, Advocate.
For the Petitioner (in CWP-4573 & 8755-2019, CWP-10597-2021 and CWP-5432- 2020):Mr. Sunny Singla and Mr. Riti Aggarwal, Advocates.
For the Petitioner (in CWP No. 36464 of 2019):Mr. L.S. Virk, Advocate.
For the Petitioner (in CWP No. 11771 of 2022):Mr. Shubham Saroha, Advocate.
For the Petitioner (in CWP-19910-2017):Mr. Satnam Chauhan, Advocate.
For the Petitioner (in CWP-16779-2018):Mr.Vijay Pal & Mr. Ashish, Advocates.
For the Petitioner (in CWP-24420-2017):Mr. H.S. Saini, Advocate.
For the Petitioner (in CWP-15869-2017 & CWPs-6735 & 29461-2018):Mr.Gagneshwar Walia, Advocate.
For the PSPCL (in CWP-19910-2017) :Mr. Sehaj Bir Singh, Advocate.
For the Petitioner (in CWPs-2476 & 3466- 2018 & CWP-16813-2020):Mr.Hardeep Singh Dhillon, Advocate.
For the Petitioner(in CWP-19909-2017, CWPs-29355, 29351, 25727, 31105- 2018, CWPs-6062 & 33303-2019):Mr.Parvesh Kumar Saini, Advocate.
For the Petitioner (in CWPs No. 19162 of 2017, 31040, 30891 of 2018, 5399 of 2022):Mr. Sunil Hooda for Mr. Samrat Malik, Advocates.
For the Petitioner (in CWP-19967-2019, CWP-20755- 2019, CWP-35879-2019 & CWP-34747-2019):Mr. Baldev Singh Maan, Advocate.
For the Petitioner (in CWP-27410-2017):Mr. Mohit Garg, Advocate.
For the Petitioner (in CWP No.5877 of 2018):Mr. Puneet Gupta, Advocate.
For the Petitioner (in CWP No.4146, 6443 of 2018):Mr.Ravi Mishra for Mr. Karan Singla, Advocates.
For the Petitioner (in CWP-16115-2017):Mr.Kapil Kakkar and Mr. Shreesh Kakkar, Advocates.
For the Petitioner (in CWP-28972-2018):Mr.Ravi Kant Sharma, Advocate.
For the Respondents (in CWP-10346-2022):Mr. Suvir Sidhu, Advocate and Mr. S.S.Gill, Advocate.
For the Respondent No.2 -PSPCL (in CWP No.27410 of 2017):Mr. Anil Kumar for Mr. Abhilaksh Grover, Advocates.
For the Respondent Nos.1 to 3 (in CWP-6045-2018):Mr. Aman Sharma, Advocate.
For the Respondent Nos.5 to 9 (in CWP-5877-2018):Mr. Bachan Singh for Mr. R.S. Cheema, Advocates.
For the Respondent No.5 (in CWP-4146-2018) and For the Respondent No.4 (in CWP-6443-2018):Mr. Arshdeep Bhullar, Advocate.
For the Respondents Nos.1 to 3-UT, Chd. (in CWP-5877-2018):Mr. P.P. Rana and Ms. Madhu Dayal, Advocates.
For the Respondents No.3/PUDA (CWP-3862-2018):Mr.Anu Chatrath, Sr. Advocate assisted by Ms. Divya Sharma, Advocate.
For the Respondents No.4 (in CWP-5877-2018):Mr.Indresh Goel, Advocate.
For the Respondents: Mr. Vi
Headnote:(A) Punjab Civil Services (Second Amendment) Rules - Notification No.7/204/2012-4FP1/60 dt.15.01.2015; GSR.3/Const/Article 309/AMD(5)/2015 dt.22.12.2015 - Amendment quashed for violating Article 14 of the Constitution, which leads to unequal treatment of employees during probation. Court held that employees must receive full pay and benefits from initial appointment. (Paras 6-8, 29-42)
(B) Administrative Law - Power of court to quash notifications - Courts have authority to ensure fairness and adherence to constitutional provisions. (Paras 22-24)
Facts of the case:
Petitioners, employed in various State departments, challenged notifications specifying fixed emoluments without allowances during probation. A Division Bench previously ruled that such terms are unconscionable and violative of constitutional rights.
Findings of Court:
Notifications were quashed, and the court directed payment of full emoluments from the date of initial appointment with considerations of equity and fairness.
Issues: The main issues included the legality of employment terms during probation, the enforcement of equal pay for equal work, and the interpretation of constitutional rights in employment matters.
Ratio Decidendi: The court reaffirmed that government employees cannot be subjected to fixed payment terms without allowances, upholding the principle that the state must act as a model employer in terms of fair remuneration.
Result: All Writ Petitions allowed; notifications quashed, entitlements reinstated.
| Table of Content |
|---|
| 1. challenge to punjab notifications detailing emoluments. (Para 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5) |
| 2. prior judgments quash unfair terms in employment. (Para 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10) |
| 3. equitable treatment of similar duties in salary. (Para 11 , 12 , 13) |
| 4. subsequent amendments affirm previous decisions. (Para 14 , 15 , 16 , 17) |
| 5. parties' arguments regarding constitutionality. (Para 18 , 19 , 20) |
| 6. court's stance affirming past judgments relevant. (Para 21 , 22 , 23 , 26 , 29) |
| 7. unconstitutionality declarations effectuate retroactively. (Para 24 , 37 , 39 , 40) |
| 8. benefits derived from judgments are applicable from initial appointment. (Para 41 , 42 , 43) |
| 9. court grants relief and retains some notifications for future review. (Para 45 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 49) |
JUDGMENT
M.S. Ramachandra Rao, J.
In this batch of Writ Petitions, certain notifications issued by the State of Punjab are challenged.
I. Notifications No.7/204/2012-4FP1/60 dt.15.01.2015, GSR.3/Const/Article 309/AMD.(5)/2015 dt.22.12.2015 and GSR.56/Const./ Article 309/ AMD.(18)/2016 dt. 05.09.2016 are challenged in following Writ Petitions:
CWPs- 6232, 16115, 17064, 17673, 19162, 19909, 19910, 22484, 23206, 25019, 27410 of 2017; CWPs- 1106, 1681, 1696, 1713, 1728, 1729, 3244, 3332, 5354, 29351, 29355, 31003, 31010, 31105, 3862, 25727, 25889, 25940, 6045, 31137, 6888, 7958, 26033 of 2018; CWPs- 35680, 33303, 35332, 4573, 8755, 12522 of 2019; CWPs- 6404, 13197, 11187, 5432, 20795, 18232, 22025, 22232 of 2020; CWP- 10597-2021; and CWPs- 25984, 26291, 10346, 18118 of 2022.
II. Only Notification No.7/204/2012-4FP1/60 dt.15.01.2015 and GSR.56/Const./ Article 309/ AMD.(18)/2016 dt.05.09.2016 are challenged in following Writ Petitions:
CWPs- 3352, 3353, 3061, 3052, 3354, 3579, 26014, 23710, 25919, 6584, 5877 of 2018; CWPs- 4964, 31727, 23213 of 2019; CWPs- 20682, 20515 of 2020; CWP- 4542 of 2021; and CWP- 11771 of 2022.
III. Only Notification No.7/204/2012-4FP1/60 dt.15.01.2015 is challenged in following Writ Petitions:
CWPs- 15869, 7834 of 2017; CWPs- 29461, 6735, 30891, 16779, 28972, 31040, 30924, 31056 of 2018; CWPs- 7966, 36464 of 2019; and CWPs- 5399, 11260 of 2022.
IV. Only Notifications No.7/204/2012-4FP1/60 dt.15.01.2015 and GSR.3/Const/Article 309/AMD.(5)/2015 dt. 22.12.2015 are challenged in following Writ Petitions:
CWPs-13922, 24420 of 2017; CWPs- 2476, 3466, 4146, 6443, 28204 of 2018; CWPs- 6062, 11788, 34747, 35879, 19967, 15642, 20755, 33835 of 2019; CWP-16813-2020; and CWP-12100-2022.
2. The petitioners in all these Writ Petitions are persons employed in various departments of the State Government or working in aided posts in private schools in the State of Punjab.
The background facts are as under:
Notification No.7/204/2012-4FP1/60 dt.15.01.2015 and clarification No.7/204/2012- 4FP.1/166 dt.15.01.2015
3. The notification dt.15.01.2015 amended the Punjab Civil Services (Second Amendment) Rules, Volume I, Part I, 2015 and added Rule 2.20-A and substituted in Rule 4.1 thereof, for sub Rule (1). They are as under: -
Fixed Monthly Emoluments' means the emoluments, drawn by a Government employee, but the said emoluments shall not include any Grade Pay, annual increment or any other allowance, except the travelling allowance as per entitlement of the post held by such employee;
New Sub Rule (1) substituted in Rule 4.1:
"(1) Subject to the rules contained in this Chapter, a competent authority may fix the pay of a Government employee, but his pay shall not be so increased as to exceed the pay sanctioned for his post without the sanction of the authority competent to create a post in the same cadre on a rate of pay equal to his pay when increased:
Provided that the Government employee [except a member of service of the Punjab Civil Services (Judicial Branch) and the employees covered under Clause (a) of Rule 4.4], shall be entitled to receive the emoluments, as specified in Rule 2.20A, during the period of his probation.
Provided further that if a Government employee falling under C
Click Here to Read the rest of this document
Back
