IN THE HIGH COURT AT CALCUTTA CONSTITUTIONAL WRIT JURISDICTION APPELLATE SIDE Present:

The Hon’ble Justice Jay Sengupta WPA 16376 of 2024 Dr. Devasis Datta vs.

The Union of India and Others For the petitioner : Mr. Soumya Majumder, Ld. Sr. Adv.

Ms. Sanjukta Dutta Mr. Kinnor Ghosh .....Advocates For the Union of India : Mr. Debajyoti Deb Mr. Anjan Chakraborty ....Advocates For the respondent Nos. 2 to 4 : Mr. Subrata Mukhopadhyay Ms. Basabi Raichoudhury Ms. Srijata Mukherjee .....Advocates Heard lastly on : 10.12.2025 Judgment on : 06.03.2026 Jay Sengupta, J:

1. This is an application under Ar ticle 226 of the Constitution of India, inter alia, praying for direction upon the respondent authorities to rescind, recall, revoke or cancel any decision that might have been taken to withdrawing financial benefits granted to the petitioner during the lifetime of his service with the respondent University, to grant the benefit of third career progression to the petitioner with effect from 20th April, 2019 so as to fix his pay at Level-14 with grade pay of Rs. 10,000/- and to pay the arrears of salaries arising out of such re-fixed pay with interest and to collect the petitioner’s pay on the basis of the financial upgradation out of carrier progression due on 20^th April, 2019 and to make payment of the same with interest.

2. Learned senior counsel appearing on behalf of the petitioner has submitted as follows. The communication dated 27.2.2025 has been issued by the Under Secretary to the Government of India, Department of Higher Education to the Director, IIEST regarding another writ petition being WPA 17610 of 2023 pending before this Court as regards non-selection of a teaching staff for a HAG scale post. In the said communication it has been stipulated that as per provision under section 13 of the NITSER Act, the Board of Governors (BoG) of IIEST, Shibpur shall be responsible for the general superintendence, direction and control of the affairs of the Institute, subject to the provisions of the said Act. At paragraph 5 of the said letter the said Under Secretary has clearly expressed that selection to a post bearing HAG scale is a purportedly administrative matter and the Board of Governors of the Institute is the apex decision making body for such cases. The said fact was wilfully withheld from the notice of the Court until 24.11.2025, leading to the obvious inference or presumption of suppression of material fact. As such, the subject matter falls within the administrative domain of the Apex Body of the Institute and fixation of pay and emoluments or granting of career advancement does not come within the domain of the Union of India in respect of an employee of the Autonomous Body, which is a statutory one. The entire case of respondent IIEST that the salary upgradation was by illegal means is, thus, misleading. In this backdrop, on 28.07.2023 the CVO of IIEST, on 31.08.2023 the 4 Member Committee constituted by IIEST and on 01.09.2023 the Chairperson of the Board of Governors of IIEST, all agreed that petitioner had been granted benefits of upgradation as per Rules. The said committees had considered in depth the aspect of fixation of pay and grant of CAS benefits and upheld the decision of granting of CAS benefits and fixation of pay during petitioner's tenure of service in IIEST. Such conscious decision taken by a Competent Authority of the Autonomous Body cannot be upset at the behest of Union of India, with whom the petitioner did not have any employer employee relationship. The Court vide order dated 29.01.2025 had directed disclosure of statutory provisions warranting issuance of the communication dated 4.6.2024 made by Dy. Secretary (NIT-s) to the Director of IIEST, Shibpur. The Ministry couldn't produce any statutory provision as on date on the basis of which the order dated 04.06.2024 was passed by the Deputy Secretary, NITs-1, effectively annulling the previous orders of the Institute authority fixing pay of the petitioner