Discrimination in pay protection for ex-army personnel violates Article 14; all selected candidates from the same recruitment process must be treated equally.

JUDGMENT :

(Ajit Kumar, J.)

1. Heard learned counsel for the petitioners and learned Additional Chief Standing Counsel.

2. By means of above writ petitions filed under Article 226 of the Constitution, petitioners who were selected for Constable GD in U.P. Civil Police 2018 are aggrieved for the discriminatary stand taken by respondents in not awarding them pay protection in terms of last pay drawn by them as ex-army personnel. All the petitioners were selected and appointed in the category of ex- army men and submit that if as a result of the same selection, selectees are sent in four batches for training at different point of time, the State is not justified in awarding pay protection to first batch of trainees and denying the same to other trainees only on the ground that Government Order decided for not giving a pay protection to ex-servicemen with effect from a subsequent date.

3. It is submitted that after selection was held selected candidates were required to be sent for training, but due to the then prevailing circumstances for Pandemic Covid-19 the U.P. Directorate Police Training vide its order dated 25^th July, 2020 divided selectees in four batches to be sent for training on different dates for different period. The first batch was sent for training in August, 2020 for the period of six months, second batch was sent for training in March, 2021 for the period of six months, the third batch was sent for training in October 2021 for six months and last and fourth batch was sent for training in May, 2022 for six months.

4. The petitioners before this Court claim to have been sent for training in second batch, which started from March, 2021 and lasted for six months till September, 2021. While first batch was completing its training appointment order got issued in their respect prior to the Government order dated 23^rd December, 2020, the date when Government Order got issued, in which it was decided that no more pay protection shall be granted to the selectees, who are ex army personnel. The Government Order provided further that it will come into force with immediate effect. The relevant paragraph of the Government Order as contained in paragraph 22 is reproduced hereunder:

5. Learned counsel for the petitioners argued that after first batch completed its training in January, 2021, it was accorded with pay protection and for example pay fixation of Kuldeep Singh newly selected constable bearing pno no. 202641386 dated 24^th January, 2024 has been brought on record. It is argued that after benefit was accorded to the first batch, the candidates selected in second, third and fourth batch who were also ex- army personnel, were not accorded with this benefit.

6. These above pleadings have come to be raised in paragraph 14 of the writ petition, in which details of various other constables who were benefited with last pay protection, that they were claiming as ex-army men. In the counter affidavit in reply to paragraph 14. Vide paragraph 16, it has been averred thus:

“ That the contents of paragraph no. 14 of the writ petition are admitted to the extent that at the time of appointment of the constable Kuldeep Singh PNO No. 202641386 in the police department on 11.10.2020 the government order dated 26.8.1977 and 18.5.1983 were effective, currently, the government order dated 23.12.2020 for the reappointment of the ex-serviceman in the service of state government is effective, in which it is clearly mentioned that the above order will be implemented with immediate effect i.e. in the cases of the ex-serviceman who have been appointed in services of the state go