Madhya Pradesh High Court
Ashok Kumar Mishra vs The State Of Madhya Pradesh on 4 October, 2024
NEUTRAL CITATION NO. 2024:MPHC-JBP:50889 1 WP-16103-2024 IN THE HIGH COURT OF MADHYA PRADESH AT JABALPUR BEFORE HON'BLE SHRI JUSTICE SURESH KUMAR KAIT, CHIEF JUSTICE & HON'BLE SHRI JUSTICE VIVEK JAIN ON THE 4 th OF OCTOBER, 2024 WRIT PETITION No. 16103 of 2024 SATYA PRAKASH BILGAIYAN Versus THE STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH AND OTHERS AND WP/16103/2024, WP/16972/2024, WP/17394/2024, WP/18309/2024, WP/20928/2024, WP/21893/2024, WP/23056/2024, WP/23059/2024, WP/23130/2024, WP/23204/2024, WP/24542/2024, WP/24543/2024, WP/24883/2024, WP/25196/2024, WP/25342/2024, WP/25511/2024, WP/25567/2024, WP/25570/2024, WP/25634/2024, WP/25646/2024, WP/25706/2024, WP/25746/2024, WP/25750/2024, WP/25819/2024, WP/25945/2024, WP/25948/2024, WP/26086/2024, WP/26247/2024, WP/26249/2024, WP/26270/2024, WP/26509/2024, WP/26511/2024, WP/26526/2024, WP/26633/2024, WP/26658/2024, WP/26681/2024, WP/26729/2024, WP/26731/2024, WP/26852/2024, WP/26933/2024, WP/27108/2024, WP/27111/2024, WP/27231/2024, WP/27257/2024, 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WP/28558/2024, WP/28591/2024, WP/28595/2024, WP/28607/2024, WP/28625/2024, WP/28626/2024, WP/28684/2024, WP/28727/2024, WP/28734/2024, WP/28744/2024, WP/28769/2024, WP/28779/2024, WP/28783/2024, WP/28784/2024, WP/28792/2024, WP/28793/2024, WP/28796/2024, WP/28834/2024, WP/28852/2024, WP/28862/2024, WP/28864/2024, WP/28874/2024, WP/28888/2024, WP/28891/2024, WP/28927/2024, WP/28931/2024, WP/28947/2024, WP/28961/2024, WP/28962/2024, WP/28963/2024, WP/28967/2024, WP/28971/2024, WP/28978/2024, WP/28996/2024, WP/29017/2024, WP/29070/2024, WP/29077/2024, WP/29107/2024, WP/29112/2024, WP/29116/2024,Signature Not VerifiedSigned by: SANTOSHMASSEYSigning time: 05-10-202413:01:58 NEUTRAL CITATION NO. 2024:MPHC-JBP:50889 2 WP-16103-2024 WP/29121/2024, WP/29148/2024, WP/29151/2024, WP/29155/2024, WP/29164/2024, WP/29167/2024, WP/29172/2024, WP/29178/2024, WP/29191/2024, WP/29192/2024, WP/29194/2024, WP/29195/2024, WP/29200/2024, WP/29207/2024, WP/29214/2024, WP/29219/2024, WP/29254/2024, WP/29290/2024, WP/29295/2024, WP/29307/2024, WP/29312/2024, WP/29340/2024, WP/29352/2024, WP/29358/2024, WP/29419/2024, WP/29424/2024, WP/29447/2024, WP/29515/2024, WP/29527/2024, WP/29546/2024, WP/29583/2024, WP/29588/2024, WP/29591/2024, WP/29607/2024, WP/29608/2024, WP/29621/2024, WP/29622/2024, WP/29623/2024, WP/29633/2024, WP/29641/2024, WP/29643/2024, WP/29646/2024, WP/29660/2024, WP/29662/2024, WP/29669/2024, WP/29711/2024, WP/29720/2024, WP/29769/2024, WP/29780/2024, WP/29795/2024, WP/29800/2024, WP/29802/2024, WP/29804/2024, WP/29805/2024, WP/29809/2024, WP/29929/2024, WP/29967/2024, WP/29996/2024, WP/29997/2024, WP/29998/2024, WP/30064/2024, WP/30069/2024, WP/30082/2024, WP/30087/2024, WP/30143/2024, WP/30204/2024, WP/30224/2024, WP/30240/2024, WP/30243/2024, WP/30248/2024, WP/30299/2024, WP/30387/2024, WP/30389/2024, WP/30490/2024, WP/28349/2024 Appearance: Shri Anil Kumar Tiwari, Shri Ashish Viswakarma, Shri Jagdamba Bux Singh, Shri Devesh Bhojne, Shri Ravindra Parashar, Ms. Vandana Tripathi, Shri Vidya Prasad, Shri Awadhesh Kumar Singh, Shri Rizwan Khan, Shri Nitin Jain, Shri Abhay Tiwari, Shri Rakesh Singh Baldev, Shri Akhil Singh, Shri Shryansh Diwar, Shri Shivm Mishra, Shri Gourav Kumar Pandey, Shri Pramod Singh Tomar with Ms. Arzoo Ali, Shri Rajneesh Gupta, Shri Awadesh Kumar Singh, Shri Atul Kumar Rai, Ms. Anupama Tiwari, Shri Ajeet Kumar Singh, Shri Raja Bhaiya Tiwari, Shri Bhupendra Kumar Shukla, Shri Amit Kumar Bajpai, Shri Ramnaresh Vishwakarma, Shri Dharmendra Kumar Kaurav, Shri Ruchir Jain, Shri Narendra Sharma, Shri Dheeraj Kumar Tiwari, Shri Nitya Nand Mishra, Ms. Prabha Kesharwani, Shri Hemant Kumar Bhannarwar, Shri Shoeb Hasan Khan, Shri Rishabh Kumar, Shri Devendra Kumar Shukla, Shri Uma Shankar Jayaswal, Shri Raman Choubey, Mr. Shafiqullah, Shri Ravikant Agrawal, Shri Rajneesh Gupta, Shri Munish Saini, Shri Shrikant Shrivastava, Shri Manoj Kumar Rajak, Shri Rajesh Kumar Patel, Shri Om Prakash Namdeo, Ms. Rajni Prajapati, Shri Anil Kumar Mishra, Shri Shashi Kant Bajpai, Ms. Sudha Gautam, Shri Rahul Mishra, Shri Shyam Yadav, Shri Brijendra Kumar Vaishya, Shri Vinod Mishra, Shri Kaushalendra Nath Pethia, Shri Sudeep Singh Saini, Shri Shankar Dayal Mishra, Shri Brijendra Kumar Mishra, Shri Jitendra Arya, Shri Santosh Sahu, Shri Sanjay Kumar Patel, Shri Bal Krishna Mishra, Ms. Pushpanjali Kumar Mishra, Shri Jayant Prakash Patel, Shri Aniruddha Prasad Pandey, Shri Swatantra Pandey, Shri Sumit Kanojiya, Shri Arun Kumar Pandey, Shri Pawan Kumar Shrivastava, Shri Kishor Roy, Shri Sachin Pandey, Shri Rajesh Kumar Sharma, Shri Kailash Dev Singh, Shri Harish Chandra Singh, Shri Soumitra Ku. Dubey, Shri Vijay Kumar Shukla, Shri Bhupendra Kumar Mishra, Shri Jitendra Mohan Sharma, Shri Atul Kumar Rai, Shri Rajendra Kumar Shrivastava, Shri Raj Kumar Tripathi, Shri Ashish Vishwakarma, Shri Alabhya Bajpai, Shri Palash Upadhyaya, Shri Ashish Vishwakarma, Shri Sachindra Kumar Raghuwanshi, Shri Aniruddha Prasad, Shri Shiv Kumar Raghuwanshi, Shri Manoj Kumar Chansauriya, Shri Naveen Kumar, Shri Vishwa Bandhu Choudhary, Shri Jeetendra Kumar Chourasiya, Shri Amit Patel, Shri Rajendra Prasad Patel, Ms. Prabha Keshwarwani, Shri Abhishek Dubey, Shri Neeraj Jain, Shri Rohit Mishra, Shri Abhinav Shrivastava, Shri Shrikant Shrivastava, Rajesh Kumar Tiwari, Shri Brijesh Kumar Choubey, ShriSignature Not VerifiedSigned by: SANTOSHMASSEYSigning time: 05-10-202413:01:58 NEUTRAL CITATION NO. 2024:MPHC-JBP:50889 3 WP-16103-2024 Sudhanshu Kumar Singh, Shri Shivam Mishra, Shri Jitendra Kumar Sharma, Shri Prateek Jain, Shri Anil Kumar Tiwari, Shri Manoj Kumar Rajak, Shri Shiv Kumar Chaturvedi, Shri Deep Chandra Bagri, Shri Rizwan Khan, Shri Ashok Kuamar Gupta, Shri Siddharth Sharma, Shri Devendra Kumar Shukla, Shri Ashish Kumar Mishra and Saurabh Kumar Soni, learned counsel for petitioners in respective petitions. Shri B.D. Singh, Deputy Advocate General and Shri S.S. Chouhan, Government Advocate for respondents/State. ORDER
Per: Hon'ble Shri Justice Suresh Kumar Kait, Chief Justice
In all these writ petitions, a common question of fact and law is involved and therefore, they are heard analogously and disposed of by this common order.
2. A common grievance of the petitioners in this batch of writ petitions is with regard to grant of annual increment which became due on completion of one year's service before attaining the age of superannuation. In some of the cases, the petitioners or the employees whose widows/legal heirs have approached this Court, have retired from service on 30th June and while in others, they have retired on 31st December of the year of their superannuation. It is their case that they have not been extended the benefit of increment which otherwise became due to them on 1st July of the same year or 1st January of the next year, as the case may be. Hence, these petitions have been filed.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioners have placed reliance upon the judgment of the Supreme Court in the case of Director (ADMN) and HR KPTCL v. C.P. Mundinamani, 2023 SCC OnLine SC 401 , wherein it is held that the entitlement to receive increment crystallises when the Government
servant completes a requisite length of service with good conduct and
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4 WP-16103-2024 becomes payable on the succeeding day. The Supreme Court further held that annual increment earned on the last day of service for rendering good service preceding one year from the date of retirement with good behaviour and efficiency was liable to be paid to the employee.
4. Circular dated 15.03.2024 issued by the Finance Department of the State of Madhya Pradesh has also been referred to, wherein all departments have been directed to grant annual increment to all the employees who have retired on 30th June / 31st December with regard to annual increment that became payable on 1st July or 1st January, as the case may be. Hence, it is prayed that the respondents may be directed to extend the pensionary benefits to the petitioners after adding annual increment from the due date along with arrears and interest thereon within a stipulated time.
5. Learned counsel for the State submits that the issue involved in the present petitions is covered by the said Circular and the same is being implemented and the cases are being scrutinized and processed accordingly.
6. Be that as it may, since petitioners/employees superannuated from service on 30th June or 31st December as the case may be, they are entitled to get the annual increment on the succeeding day of their retirement i.e. on 1st of July or 1st of January, as the case may be.
7. That this Court following the judgment of the Supreme Court in Rushibhai Jagdishchandra Pathak Vs. Bhavnagar Municipal Corporation, 2022 SCC Online SC 641 had noticed that as there was delay in approaching the Court, the benefit of arrears was restricted to a period of three years immediately preceding the filing of the petition. However, the Supreme
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5 WP-16103-2024 Court in respect of C.P. Mundinamani (supra) has clarified by order dated 06.09.2024 in Miscellaneous Application (Diary) No.2400/2024 in Special Leave Petition (C) No.4722/2021 title Union of India & Another Vs. M. Siddaraj as under:
"(a). The judgment dated 11.04.2023 will be given effect to in case of third parties from the date of the judgment, that is, the pension by taking into account one increment will be payable on and after 01.05.2023. Enhanced pension for the period prior to 31.04.2023 will not be paid.
(b) For persons who have filed writ petitions and succeeded, the directions given in the said judgment will operate as res judicata, and accordingly, an enhanced pension by taking one increment would have to be paid.
(c) The direction in (b) will not apply, where the judgment has not attained finality, and cases where an appeal has been preferred, or if filed, is entertained by the appellate court.
(d) In case any retired employee has filed any application for intervention/impleadment in Civil Appeal No. 3933/2023 or any other writ petition and a beneficial order has been passed, the enhanced pension by including one increment will be payable from the month in which the application for intervention/impleadment was filed."
8. In this view of the matter, in cases where there is a delay by the petitioners in approaching the Court, the benefit of arrears shall be restricted and shall be payable only w.e.f. 01.05.2023 along with interest @7% per annum as directed by the Supreme Court in the case of M. Siddaraj (supra).
9. Accordingly, the respondents are directed to grant the annual increment to the petitioners which became due to them on 1st of July of the year of their superannuation or 1st of January of the succeeding year, as the case may be, with all consequential benefits. Further, it is directed that the amount accrued in favour of the petitioners on account of annual increment be paid to them within a period of six weeks in accordance with the order of the
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6 WP-16103-2024 Supreme Court dated 06.09.2024 passed in the case of M. Siddaraj (supra).
10. In view of the foregoing, all these writ petitions are disposed of in the above terms.
(SURESH KUMAR KAIT) (VIVEK JAIN) CHIEF JUSTICE JUDGE SKM
