B.C. Nagaraj & Anr. vs The State of Karnataka & Ors.

Court

Supreme Court of India

Date

13 September 2023

Case No.

Civil Appeal Nos.5529¬5530 of 2023

Result

Allowed

Bench

Abhay S. Oka, Pankaj Mithal

Citation

[2023] 12 S.C.R. 235 : 2023 INSC 828

Issue for consideration

Whether the retired physical instructors of the Government College are entitled to the benefit of revised pay scale when the same benefit was granted to the similarly placed employees. Service law – Revised pay scale – Benefit of – Entitlement, to retired physical instructors of the Government College – When the same benefit of University Grant Commission pay scale under the Government order dated 15.11.1999 was granted to the similarly placed employees: Held: Retired physical instructors should not be denied the same relief, when the same benefit was granted to the similarly placed employees – Case of similarly placed retiree, decided by the Single Judge of the High Court was similar to the present appellants wherein the Single Judge held that he was entitled to the benefit of the revised UGC pay scale from 1.01.1996 based on the order dated 15.11.1999 – Said order attained finality upto this Court – It appears that the Order dated 19.10.2006 issued by UGC and the Order dated 4.07.2008 issued by the State Government that the Government employees were not entitled to a revised pay scale with retrospective effect were not pointed out to the courts below as also this Court who decided the case of the similarly placed retiree – State Government never applied for the review and allowed the said order to become final – In the subsequent decision, the Division Bench of the same High Court noted the directions issued by the UGC on 19.10.2006 and the Order dated 4.07.2008 – However, even thereafter, despite the Government Order dated 4.07.2008, in 2014, to the employees who were similarly placed as the appellants, the benefits of the revised UGC pay scale in terms of the Government order dated 15.11.1999 were granted – Now, the State Government cannot rely upon the Government Order dated 4.07.2008 – Thus, issuance of direction to the State Government to extend the benefits under the Government Order dated 15.11.1999 to the retired physical instructors within the stipulated period. [Paras 6-12]

Headnote

LIST OF CITATIONS AND OTHER REFERENCES

State of Karnataka & Anr. v. Puttaswamy and Ors. Writ Appeal no.234 of 2007 dated 29th April 2011; Irayya & Ors. v. The Secretary & Ors. Writ Petition no. 62679 of 2012 30th July 2012 – referred to. OTHER CASE DETAILS INCLUDING IMPUGNED

ORDER AND APPEARANCES

JUDGMENT / ORDER OF THE SUPREME COURT JUDGMENT ABHAY S. OKA, J. FACTUAL ASPECTS 1. The appellants were employed initially as Physical Instructors in Government Grade Colleges in Karnataka. The first appellant reached the selection grade pay scale of the University Grants Commission (UGC) on 1st January 1986. The second appellant was granted senior scale of pay on 1st January 1986 and selection grade of pay from 13th July 1990. The first & ORS.[ABHAY S. OKA, J.] appellant was superannuated on 31st January 1998, and the second appellant was superannuated on 31st May 2004. Both, at the time

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