Service Law – Re-appointment of retired Armed Force personnel – Fixation of Pay – Central Civil Services (Fixation of Pay of Re-employed Pensioners) Order, 1986 – Para 8 – Respondentretired Armed Force personnel upon re-appointment in government service – Whether entitled to his basic pay being fixed at par with his last drawn pay, in view of Para 8 of the CCS Order – Held: Para 8 of the CCS Order does not provide that on re-employment in government service, a retired Armed Force personnel would be entitled to his basic pay being fixed at par with his last drawn pay – No entitlement of pay protection under Para 8 of the CCS Order – Manner of computation of pay as envisaged under Para 8 of the CCS Order clearly stipulates that the pay so arrived at should not exceed the basic pay (including the deferred pay but excluding other emoluments) last drawn by the respondent in the armed force – That does not mean that respondent is entitled to a pay equal to what was last drawn by him in the Armed Force – High Court erred in holding that retired Armed Forces personnel on re-appointment in the government service would be entitled to the last drawn pay as Armed Forces personnel.
Allowing the appeal, the Court
HELD : 1.1. On a plain reading of Para 8 of the Central Civil Services (fixation of Pay of Re-employed Pensioners) Order, 1986, it is clear that an Emergency Commissioned Officer and a Short Service Commissioned Officer working in the Armed Forces on his employment to a civil post shall be entitled to advance increments equal to the completed years of service rendered in the Armed Forces on a basic pay equal to or higher than the minimum of the scale attached to the civil post in which they are employed. However, the pay arrived at should not exceed the basic pay last drawn by them in the Armed Forces. Therefore, on a true interpretation of Para 8, on re-employment in the government service, an employee working with the Armed Forces, on re-employment shall be entitled to advance increments equal to the completed years of service rendered by him in the Armed Forces on a basic pay equal to or higher than the minimum of the scale attached to the civil post in which he is employed. [Para 5.3][266-G-H; 267-A-B]
1.2. Para 8 of the CCS Order makes a reference to two rates of pay in case of emergency commissioned officers and shortservice commissioned officers being appointed in the government service: First, they may be granted advance increment equal to the completed years of service rendered by them in the armed forces on a basic pay equal to or higher than the minimum of the scale attached to the civil posts in which they are employed. The pay is to be fixed with reference to the scale attached to the civil posts in which they are employed; Second, while computing the pay in the aforesaid manner it should not exceed the basic pay last drawn by them in the armed forces. In other words, while computing the pay of the said officers who joined the civil posts their pay cannot exceed last drawn pay by them in the armed forces. In case it exceeds then it is capped to the last drawn pay in the armed forces. Therefore, a claim for the last drawn pay in the armed forces is not a matter of right. [Para 5.3][267-C-E]
1.3. Applying the above in the present case, it is noted that the respondent was fixed at the entry level of PB-3 (Rs.15,600– Rs.39,100) in the armed forces and six advance increments equal to the number of years the respondent served in the Indian Army was added to the basic pay i.e. Rs.15,600/- = Rs.19,600/-. The Grade Pay fixed in the civil post is Rs.5,400/- and hence a total of Rs.25,080/- was the computed pay in the civil post. The said pay of Rs.25,080/- does not exceed the pay last drawn by the respondent in the armed forces. Hence, the pay so computed is just and proper. [Para 5.3][267-E-G]
2.1. Para 8 of the CCS Order does not indicate that the pay last drawn by the respondent in the armed forces should be the pay to be computed when he joined the civil post. There is no entitlement of pay protection under para 8 of the CCS. The manner of computation of pay as envisaged under para 8 also clearly stipulates that the pay so arrived at should not exceed the basic pay (including the deferred pay but excluding other emoluments) last drawn by the respondent in the armed force. That does not mean that the respondent is entitled to a pay equal to what was last drawn by him in the armed force. [Para 5.3][267-G-H; 268-A]
2.2. Also, para 8 of the CCS Order makes a reference to the civil post in which the personnel of armed force is to be employed with reference to the minimum scale of pay attached to the civil post and while computing the pay scale the last drawn pay in the armed force has no relevance in the sense that there is no pay protection that can be sought by the ex-personnel of armed force. The reference to the last drawn pay in the armed forces is only to ensure that the pay computed in the civil post in the manner envisaged in para 8 of CCS Order does not exceed the basic pay (including the deferred pay but excluding other emoluments) last drawn by the personnel in the armed forces. For example, if the minimum of the scale attached to the civil post is higher than the last drawn pay of the personnel in the armed force and while computing the pay for the civil post as envisaged under para 8 of CCS if it so exceeds then possibly the last drawn pay in the armed forces could be paid. The said Rule proscribes fixation of a pay exceeding the basic pay (including the deferred pay but excluding other emoluments) last drawn by the personnel in the armed forces in respect of the civil post to which an ex-armed force personnel is appointed. Thus, in a case where computation of pay exceeds last drawn pay in the armed forces then, in such a situation possibly the last drawn pay of such a personnel can be fixed. [Para 5.3][268-B-E]
3.1. In the present case while serving in the Armed Forces respondent was in the pay scale of Rs.15600 – 39100. The post on which he was re-employed in the government service also carries the pay scale of Rs.15600 – 39100 and he has been allowed advance increments of six years as he completed six years of service in the Armed Forces. However, his grade pay has been fixed at Rs.5400 being the grade pay which is available for the civil post. [Para 5.3][268-F]
3.2. Therefore, the pay fixation of the respondent in the government service was absolutely in consonance with para 8 of the CCS Order 1986. Para 8 does not provide that on reemployment in Government Services a retired Armed Force personnel would be entitled to his basic pay being fixed at par with his last drawn pay. Holding so will violate para 8 of the CCS Order. Under the circumstances the High Court has committed a grave error in observing and holding that the retired Armed Forces personnel on re-appointment in the government service would be entitled to the last drawn pay as Armed Forces personnel. Therefore, the impugned judgment and order passed by the High Court is unsustainable being contrary to para 8 of the CCS Order, 1986. [Para 5.4][268-G-H; 269-A]
Government of India & Ors. v. Captain (Retd.) Kapil Chaudhary [Decision of High Court of Delhi in Writ Petition (C) No.2331 of 2012]- referred to..
As published in the Supreme Court Reports, Supreme Court of India. Text from the Indian Supreme Court Judgments open data set (Dattam Labs), CC BY 4.0.
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