Doctrine of equality in service matters.

JUDGMENT

G. S. Singhvi, J.:-Leave granted.

2. The question which arises for consideration in this appeal is whether the appellants, who have been working as Child Development Project Officer (CDPO) in the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) since July, 1999, are entitled to be paid salary in the pay scale prescribed for that post.

3. On being selected by the West Bengal Public Service Commission, the appellants were appointed as Assistant Child Development Project Officer (ACDPO) in 1986-87. After about 12 years, the competent authority issued order dated 7.7.1999 with the concurrence of the Finance Department of the Government whereby the petitioners were temporarily transferred to ICDS projects to act as CDPOs in their existing pay scales.

4. The appellants made representation dated 15.2.2011 with the prayer that they may either be promoted to the post of CDPO or be given pay scale of that post by asserting that they had been discharging the duties of the post of CDPO.

5. After about 2 years, the appellants filed O.A. No.330/2003 before the State Administrative Tribunal, West Bengal (for short, ‘the Tribunal’) and prayed for issue of a direction to the respondents to pay them salary and allowances in the scale of Rs.5500-11200 attached to the post of CDPO from the date they were working as acting CDPO, i.e., 7.7.1999. In paragraph 4 of the application, the appellants averred as under:

“Your Applicants state that although your Petitioners have been posted as Acting Child Development Project Officer, (CDPO) by virtue of said Office Order (Annexure (‘P/l’) and have been shouldering the higher responsibilities of the post of C.D.P.O., the impugned order stipulates that your Applicants and others covered by the said order, should get pay and allowance in their existing pay scale of A.C.D.P.O. Such denial of higher scale of pay and allowances of the post of Child Development Project Officer (CDPO) to your Applicants is unjust, improper and illegal under the law of the land, since no employee should get the pay and allowances of the post he holds, even in Acting capacity. Your Applicants, therefore, pray to the Hon'ble Bench for appropriate direction or directions in the Respondents 1 to 3 to pay the pay and allowance of the post of Child Development Project Officer (CDPO), the scale of pay being Rs.470-1160/-(ROPA 1981)/1640-3625 (ROPA 1990)/5500-l1200 (ROPA 1988), from the date of Applicants have been working as Acting CSPO by dint of Office Order dated 07.07.99 (Annexure ‘P/1’).”

6. In the counter filed by the respondents, it was not disputed that the appellants had been discharging the duties of CDPO but it was averred that there is no recruitment rule exclusively for the post of CDPO which is governed by West Bengal Junior Welfare Services Rules (for short, “the Rules”). This is evinced from paragraphs 3 and 4 of the reply, which are extracted below:

“(3) With regard to the statements made in paragraph 4.11 of the instant application the respondents state that there is no recruitment rule exclusively for the post of CDPOS. The post of CDPOS are manned from the WBJSW service cadres along with 8 other posts. Hence the question of changing recruitment rules for the post of CDPOS holds no ground. In respect of the projects having no regular CDPO the ACDPOS are ordered to hold the charge of the projects in order to run the projects. It is a common practice of the Administration to order the office second in command to hold the charge of the office whenever the office first in command goes on leave, or tour, or otherwise the post falls vacant. Such duties have also been mentioned in the job chart of the ACDPOS published by the Government of India. To remain in charge does not qualify him to enjoy the pay scale of the head of office.

The respondent deny and dispute all allegations, imputations and contentions made in this paragraph which are not borne out by records and those which are contrary to inconsistent with what ha