Point of Law :
If the present factual matrix is tested on the anvil of the aforesaid principles, there can be no trace of doubt that both the States and the Corporations have conveniently ostracised the concept of “model employer”. It would not be wrong to say that they have done so with Pacific calmness, sans vision, shorn of responsibility and oblivious of their role in such a situation. Their action reflects the attitude of emotionlessness, proclivity of impassivity and deviancy with cruel impassibility. Neither of the States nor the Corporations have even thought for a moment about the livelihood of the employees. They have remained totally alien to the situation to which the employees have been driven to. In a State of good governance the Government cannot act like an alien. It has an active role to play. It has to have a constructive and progressive vision

ORDER :

M.S. Ramachandra Rao, J.

These cases highlight the travails of former employees of the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh Housing Board (for short ‘APHB’) and their widows/legal heirs with regard to settlement of pension and other pensionary benefits after bifurcation of the erstwhile composite State of Andhra Pradesh into the separate new State of Telangana and the residuary State of Andhra Pradesh w.e.f. 02-06-2014.

2. The composite State of Andhra Pradesh had enacted the APHB Act, 1956 to make schemes and carry on works for the purpose of dealing with and satisfying the need of housing accommodation in the said State. Under Sec.3 of the said Act, by notification, the APHB was created as a body corporate having perpetual succession and a common seal competent to acquire and hold both moveable and immoveable property.

3. One of the service benefits allowed to the employees of the APHB who retire on superannuation was Pension.

4. The composite State of Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated into the new State of Telangana and the residuary State of Andhra Pradesh under the A.P. Reorganisation Act, 2014 (for short ‘the Act’).

5. But the bifurcation/demerger of the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh Housing Board into two Successor Boards for the two Successor States has not yet been completed.

6. However, pending such bifurcation, as per the instructions of the Government issued vide Circular Memo No.3685/INF(SRC)/2014, dt.29.05.2014, with effect from the appointed date i.e., 2-6-2014, it is functioning as two independent operational divisions/entities viz., APHB (Andhra Entity) (hence forth referred to as “APHB”) and APHB (Telangana Entity) (later re-named as TSHB) (henceforth referred to as “TSHB”) delivering services in the respective States.

7. The apportionment of the assets, liabilities and the employees of the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh Housing Board between the two successor Boards has not yet been completed as no mutual agreement/consensus could be reached with regard to the same between the two Successor Boards/States. The allocation of pensioners who retired prior to 2-6-2014 between both the successor Boards has also not been done.

8. According to the successor APHB, 96% of the properties of the erstwhile APHB are located in Telangana State and a mere 4% are located in the residuary State of Andhra Pradesh.

9. According to APHB Pensioners Association, there are 457 pensioners as on 02-06-2014 of which 330 have Telangana nativity and 127 have A.P. nativity.

10. According to the TSHB Retired Employees Association, there are 480 pensioners of which 314 belong to the State of Telangana and 164 belong to the A.P. State.

11. In brief the pleas of the petitioners in these Writ petitions is as under:

(A). W.P.No.13789 of 2019

(a) W.P.No.13789 of 2019 was filed by a three former employees of the APHB who had retired from service prior to 02-06-2014, the date of bifurcation of the composite State of Andhra Pradesh into the new State of Telangana and the residuary State of Andhra Pradesh.

(b) They contend that they were being paid pension calculated as per the Revised Pay Scales of 2008 though Pay Scales were revised w.e.f. 02-06-2014 by the State of Telangana. They contend that the pension has to be re-fixed as per the Revised Pay Scales, 2013 brought into effect by the State of Telangana from 02-06-2014; that Dearness Relief payable w.e.f. 01-07-2015 was not paid upto date; and that both Governments had issued Government Orders releasing Dearness Relief to pensioners of their Departments but the pensioners of the erstwhile APHB were denied the same.

(c) Proceedings dt.20-07-2018 were issued by the successor APHB to (i) pay pension only to pensioners belonging to the Andhra entity till the final bifurcation of the APHB, (ii) to meet the pension liability of the pensioners as on 02-06-2014 on the basis of their nativity as recorded in their Service Registers f