Permanent employees classified under M.P. Standing Orders are entitled to revised pay scales without increment until regularization.

1. Leave granted. These appeals have been preferred by the appellant State of Madhya Pradesh and others against the judgment and order dated 30-3-2012 passed by the High Court of Madhya Pradesh, Bench at Gwalior in State of M.P. v. Dilip Singh Patel, Writ Appeal No. 163 of 2012, decided on 30-3-2012 (MP) and order dated 2-11-2012 passed in Dilip Singh Patel v. State of M.P. , 2012 SCC OnLine MP 9649. By the impugned judgment, the Division Bench of the High Court affirmed the order dated 14-2-2012 passed by the learned Single Judge in Dilip Singh Patel v. State of M.P. , 2012 SCC Online MP 1071 and the review petition against the said order was dismissed.

2. The factual matrix of the case is as follows: the respondent employees were classified as permanent employees as per the statutory provisions of the M.P. Standing Standards Orders. However, they were not granted the benefit of Sixth Pay Commission. The learned Single Judge after taking into consideration the facts and circumstances of the case and judgment of the High Court in P.H.E.D. v. Budha Rao Magarde , 2002 (1) MP LJ 385 : 2001 SCC OnLine MP 195 held that the respondent employees are eligible to receive revised scale after their classification. This order was affirmed by the Division Bench.

3. The learned counsel appearing for the State submitted that the respondents who were daily - wage employees were classified as permanent employees are not entitled for revised scale of pay in terms of the Sixth Pay Commission. Per contra, according to the learned counsel for the respondents, the respondents were classified as permanent employees as per the statutory provision of the M.P. Standing Standards Orders are entitled for the revised scale of pay. He further submits that Respondents 1 and 2 are already receiving regular scale of pay.

4. We have heard the learned counsel for the parties and perused the records. It appears that the respondents earlier moved before the Administrative Tribunal, Gwalior by filing original applications such as OAs Nos. 648 of 1995, 293 of 1991, etc. In compliance with the orders passed in such original applications, the Chief Engineer, Yamuna Kachhar, Water Resources Department, Gwalior (M.P.) by orders issued in between April 2004 and June 2004 provided the minimum wages and allowances to the respondents without increment as per the Schedule of the pay scale from the date of the order of the Tribunal. It was further ordered that the regularisation of the daily - wage employees shall be made as per the seniority list with due procedure and the benefit of increment and other benefits can only be granted after the regularisation as per the Rules. It was ordered that the order of the Court for benefit of minimum wages and allowance shall be effected from the issuance of those orders.

5. From the aforesaid facts, it is clear that the respondents are entitled for minimum wages and allowance as per the fixed Schedule of the pay scale but without any increment. In such case, if the pay scale is revised from time to time including the pay scale as revised pursuant to the Sixth Pay Commission, the respondents will be entitled to minimum wages and allowance as per said revised scale without increment. Only after regularisation of their service, as per seniority and rules, they can claim the benefit of increment and other benefits.

6. In view of the aforesaid observations, while we are not inclined to interfere with the substantive part of the impugned judgment and order passed by the learned Single Judge or the Division Bench or the order passed in review application, we modify the order dated 14-2-2012 passed by the learned Single Judge in Dilip Singh Patel v. State of M.P. , 201