126 IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH CWP-25159-2025 Date of decision: 28.08.2025 Surender Singh ....Petitioner Versus State of Haryana and others ...Respondents CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE HARPREET SINGH BRAR Present: Mr. Rajat Mor, Advocate for the petitioner.

Mr. Vikrant Pamboo, Additional A.G., Haryana for respondents No.2 & 3.

HARPREET SINGH BRAR, J. (ORAL)

1. The present civil writ petition has been filed under Articles 226/227 of the Constitution of India for issuance of a writ in the nature of certiorari for quashing the action of the respondents in not granting the benefit of revised pay scale Rs.1200-2040/- w.e.f. 01.05.1990 and all other consequential benefits arising therefrom.

CONTENTIONS

2. Learned counsel for the petitioner inter alia contends that the petitioner was appointed as a Tube-well Driver in the year 1979 and was placed in the pay scale of Rs.950-1400/- w.e.f. 01.05.1990 as per memo dated 27.08.1991 (Annexure P-2). Further, the State Government vide memo dated 26.07.1991 (Annexure P-1) approved the revised pay scale of Rs.1200-2040/- for employees working on technical posts, including Tube-well Operators. Thereafter, when the benefit of technical pay scale was denied to a certain set of employees who were working on technical posts but were not possessing Matric/ITI qualification, a bunch of writ petitions were filed before this Court with the lead case being CWP No.18754 of 1991 titled as ‘Gurdev Singh and another Vs.State of Haryana and others .’ This Court allowed the writ petitions and vide common order dated 18.01.2010 (Annexure P-3), the respondents in that case were directed to release the revised pay scale of Rs.1200-2040 to all the petitioners who were working on technical post from the date of provision, i.e., 01.05.1990.

3. Subsequently, on 09.08.2010, a letter was issued by the Finance Department to all the Heads of Departments in Haryana with regard to revision of pay scale of technical post (Annexure P-4). The State Government challenged the order passed in Gurdev Singh’s case (supra) by way of filing SLP No. CC 2864/2011 which was dismissed on 21.02.2011. The petitioner made several representations to the respondent-Board for the grant of pay scale of Rs.1200-2040 while relying upon various judgments passed by this Court but the grievance raised by the petitioner was not redressed.

4. On 13.02.2012, this Court allowed a bunch of writ petitions and directed the respondents to grant the arrears of pay to the petitioners therein. In furtherance of the order passed by this Court on 31.12.2012, the Finance Department issued general instructions and made these instructions applicable to all employees even if they had not filed any writ petition as discernible from Annexure P-8. The petitioner had also sought information from the Public Health Department Jind under the Right to Information Act, 2005 as to whether the benefit of the revised pay scale has been given to all the Tubewell Driver/Operator/Water Pump Operators who do not possess the qualification of Matric/ITI. The department vide letter dated 15.05.2013 (Annexure P-12) confirmed that the benefit of the revised pay scale has been given to all tubewell drivers/operators/water pump operators and the said benefit has also been granted to those employees who were non matric/ITI. Since the grievance of the petitioner was not addressed by the respondents, the petitioner filed CWP No.22418 of 2013. However, the petitioner sought permission of this Court to withdraw the petition in view of the enforcement of Haryana (Abolition of Distinction of Pay Scales) Act, 2014 and also to avail other remedies in accordance with law.

5. Learned counsel for the petitioner places reliance on the judgment passed by the Division Bench of this Court in CWP No.11710 of 2014 titled as ‘Sarbans Singh and others Vs. State of Haryana’ decided on 25.03.2025 (Annexure P-15) and submits that he is also entitled to the relief in terms of Sarbans Singh cas