Judgment

VENKATARAMA AYYAR, J. : The Point for decision in this appeal is whether a Resolution of the Government of Central Provinces and Berar, now Madhya Pradesh, dated 16-9-1948 fixing a scale of dearness allowance to be paid to its servants is repugnant to Article 14 of the Constitution.

2. The circumstances under which the above Resolution came to be adopted may be briefly mentioned. Consequent on the war, there was a phenomenal rise in the price of foodstuffs and of other essential commodities, and among the persons worst hit by it were the Government servants. As a measure of relief to them, the Central and the Provincial Governments sanctioned a grant of grain allowances to them under various Resolutions passed in 1940. The scheme adopted by the Central Government was that its employees stationed in various Provinces received the same benefit as the respective Provincial Government employees. But this scheme was found to be unsuitable for employees of the Central Government as the allowance granted by the Provincial Government were not uniform.

On 10-5-1946 the Central Government appointed a Central Pay Commission, hereinafter referred to as the Commission, to enquire into and report on the conditions of service of its employees with particular reference to "the structure of their pay scales and standards of remuneration with the object of achieving a rationalisation, simplification and uniformity to the fullest degree possible". The Commission which was presided over by Sir S. Varadachariar, commended by its report dated 3-5-1947 the grant of dearness allowance on the specified scale. On 27-5-1947 the Government of Central Provinces and Berar appointed a Pay Committee, hereinafter referred to as the Committee,

"to examine the recommendations of the Central Pay Commission and to report the extent to which and the modifications subject to which these recommendations should be accepted by the Provincial Government, so far as Government servants under its rule-making control are concerned."

By its report dated 22-4-1948 the Committee recommended the grant of dearness allowance on a scale which, though practically identical with that adopted by the Commission in respect of salaries above Rs. 400 per mensem, was less that it as regards salaries of Rs. 400 per mensem or less. There recommendations were accepted by Government by its Resolution dated 16-9-1948. This difference in the result between the two scales not unnaturally caused considerable, dissatisfaction among the employees concerned, and after unsuccessful attempts to get redress on the executive side, they filed through their representative the respondent, the present application under Article 226 of the Constitution.

3. In the petition it was alleged that "the State Government should have uniformity adopted the Government of India rates for all its servants and the discrimination in making the two-fold slab and accepting the Government of India rates for one slab, i. e., for servants receiving salary over Rs. 400 and not accepting them in respect of the other slab, i. e., of servants drawing below Rs. 400 is highly discriminatory."  

that

"the State Government servant has a right to be treated equally with the Central Government servant similarly situated",

and that

"every servant has these fundamental and natural rights and the petitioner and the members of the Ministerial Services Association have a right to demand from the respondent the Dearness to demand from the respondent the Dearness Allowance at the Government of India rates".

The petitioner then prayed :

"That declaring that all ministerial servants are entitled to the Government of India rates of Dearness Allowance or in any case adequate Dearness Allowance, the State Government should be directed by a writ of mandamus or by any other suitable writ or direction to cancel the discriminatory rules of Dearness Allowance and adopt the Government of India rates to all servants without discrimination or in any case, t