Contractual employees will be paid minimum of pay scale payable: Punjab and Haryana High Court

Saurabh Malik

Chandigarh, June 16

In a significant order, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has made it clear that the contractual employees in the state will be paid “minimum of the pay scale payable on the post they are currently working at”.

The ruling by Justice Arun Monga came on a petition filed against the State of Haryana and other respondents by Devender and other petitioners through senior advocate RK Malik with counsel DS Mann.

Appearing before the Bench, their counsel expressed apprehension that five posts of data entry operators on contractual basis may be filled up by displacing the petitioners with another set of contractual employees on the basis of an order.

Appearing for the petitioners during the preliminary hearing of the matter, their counsel had earlier submitted that there was no allegation of misconduct or lack of work efficiency against the petitioners appointed as data entry operators on contract basis in 2011on the recommendation of the Haryana Electronic Developments Corporation (HARTRON).

But they were now being replaced with another set of contractual employees recommended by the HARTRON vide a communication annexed along the petition, the counsel added.

The counsel had further submitted that the recommendations were not made in respect of additional vacancies and the petitioners were about to be relieved.

Issuing notice of motion to the respondents, the Bench, in July 2017, had made it clear that appointment would not be made pursuant to the communication in the matter. The appointments, if already made, would remain stayed till the next date of hearing, the Bench had added.

Taking on record the counsel’s contentions that currently all contractual employees in the state were being deputed through the Haryana Kaushal Rozgar Nigam, Justice Monga asserted that the respondents, needless to say, would be at the liberty to continue with the services of the petitioners through the nigam if so desires.

“In the parting, it is also made clear that petitioners shall also be entitled to the benefit of Apex Court judgment dated October 26, 2016, rendered in ‘State of Punjab and others versus Jagjit Singh and others’ and henceforth will be paid salary in accordance thereof i.e., minimum of the pay scale payable on the post on which they are currently working at,” Justice Monga concluded.

Petitioners entitled to SC order benefit

Petitioners shall also be entitled to the benefit of the SC judgment of 2016 rendered in ‘State of Punjab and others versus Jagjit Singh and others’ and will be paid minimum of the pay-scale payable on the post they are currently working at. Justice Arun Monga, Punjab and Haryana High Court