Letters Patent Appeal No. 1586 of 2012 · Patna High Court · 2012
Case Details
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA Letters Patent Appeal No. 1586 of 2012 In Civil Writ Jurisdiction Case No. 7427 of 2012 With Interlocutory Application No. 6687 of 2012 And Interlocutory Application No. 6688 of 2012 In Letters Patent Appeal No. 1586 of 2012 ====================================================== 1. National Highway Authorities of India through its General Manager, G – 5 & 6, Sector-10, Dwarika, New Delhi – 110075 2. Member (Administration), National Highway Authorities of India through its General Manager, G – 5 & 6, Sector-10, Dwarika, New Delhi – 110075 3. The Deputy General Manager (Administration), National Highway Authorities of India through its General Manager, G – 5 & 6, Sector-10, Dwarika, New Delhi – 110075 4. The Manager (Administration), National Highway Authorities of India through its General Manager, G – 5 & 6, Sector-10, Dwarika, New Delhi – 110075
Decision
.... .... Appellants / Respondents 2 to 5 in the Writ Petition. Versus 1. Raghu Nandan Prasad, S/o Sri Dwarika Prasad, resident of 303 Ganesh Dham Apartment, 3/New Patliputra Colony, P.S. – Patliputra, District – Patna – 800 013, 2. Mukesh Kumar, S/o Late Lakshmi Mahto, Resident of Nawab Path, New By-pass Road, P.O. – Anisabad, Patna – 800 002, 3. Sachidanand Prasad Yadav, S/o Sri Lakhan Gope, A-203, Sagar Apartment, Magistrate Colony Road, Khajpura, P.S. – Shastri Nagar, Patna – 800 014, 4. Braj Kumar Ojha, S/o Late Ram Bilash Ojha, Manjulam, Road No. 1, Magistrate Colony, Ashiana Road, P.S. – Shastri Nagar, Patna – 800 025 … … Respondents 1st Set / petitioner in the Writ Petition 5. The State of Bihar through the Secretary, Rod Construction Department, Bihar, Patna .... .... Respondent 2nd Set / Respondent no. 1 in the Writ Petition. Patna High Court LPA No.1586 of 2012 (13) dt.18-12-2013 2/4 ====================================================== Appearance: For the Appellant/s : Mr. S.N. Pathak, Sr.S.C.,C.G. and Mr. Prashant Kumar, Advocate. For the Respondent/s : Mr. Abhinav Shrivastava, Advocate. ====================================================== CORAM: HONOURABLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE and HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE ASHWANI KUMAR SINGH ORAL ORDER (Per: HONOURABLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE) 13 18-12-2013 Re. Interlocutory Application No. 6687 of 2012. Delay of 31 days occurred in filing this Letters Patent Appeal is condoned. Interlocutory Application stands disposed of. Re. Letters Patent Appeal No. 1586 of 2012 & Interlocutory Application No. 6688 of 2012. This Appeal under Clause 10 of the Letters Patent is preferred by the respondent National Highways Authority of India (hereinafter referred to as “the Authority”) against the order dated 26th June 2012 made by the learned single Judge in CWJC No. 7427 of 2012. The respondents-writ petitioners are the employees of the State Government. Pursuant to the advertisement published by the Authority in January 2010 for appointment of the employees of the State Government, Corporations, etc. on deputation for four years, the petitioners applied for appointment on deputation. The petitioners were selected on condition that they should join the service under the Authority. Pursuant to their appointment, the Authority requested the State Government to relieve the petitioners to join the Authority latest by 5th May 2010. As the petitioners were not relieved by the State Government, a reminder was sent on 4th August 2010 to relieve the petitioners Patna High Court LPA No.1586 of 2012 (13) dt.18-12-2013 3/4 latest by 16th August 2010 failing which the offer of their appointment would stand withdrawn / cancelled. Even after the said reminder and the ultimatum, the State Government did not relieve the writ petitioners to join the service under the Authority until January 2011.The petitioners were relieved on 14th January 2011 to join the service under the Authority. The Authority did not accept their service and intimation to that effect was sent to the State Government in June 2011. Pursuant to the said intimation, the writ petitioners again joined the service under the State Government in July 2011. It is apparent that since January 2011 till July 2011, the petitioners did not have a posting either under the State Government or under the Authority. The petitioners, therefore, approached this Court under Article 226 of the Constitution in above CWJC No. 7427 of 2012 against the Authority and the State Government for a direction to pay salary to the writ petitioners from January 2011 to July/August 2011. The learned single Judge has allowed the Writ Petition and has directed the Authority to pay salary of the petitioners for the five months the petitioners had no posting either under the State Government or under the Authority. Therefore, this Appeal. It is the grievance of the Authority that although the petitioners had not served under the Authority at all inasmuch as they were not allowed to join the Authority as such by the specified date, the Authority has no obligation to pay salary to the writ petitioners. Learned advocate Mr. Abhinav Shrivastava has appeared for the writ petitioners. He has contested the Appeal. Let us first note that the writ petitioners had no Patna High Court LPA No.1586 of 2012 (13) dt.18-12-2013 4/4 right to deputation and they had continued lien in the State service. As recorded in the letter dated 4th August 2012, the Authority had extended the time for joining till 16th August 2010 failing which the offer was withdrawn or cancelled. It is not in dispute that none of the petitioners was relieved by 16th August 2010; nor did they join the service under the Authority by 16th August 2010. In our opinion after 16th August 2010 the Authority was not obliged either to accept them in service or to pay salary to the writ petitioners. For the aforesaid reasons, the Appeal is allowed. The impugned order dated 26th June 2012 made by the learned single Judge in CWJC No. 7427 of 2012 is set aside. CWJC No. 7427 of 2012 is dismissed. It is clarified that we have not examined the petitioners’ claim against the State Government on merits. The Writ Petition is dismissed insofar as the petitioners have approached against the National Highways Authority of India. This order shall not preclude the writ petitioners from claiming the salary from January 2011 to July/August 2011, the period during which they were left without posting, from the State Government. The petitioners may make representation to the State Government in this regard. In the event the representation is rejected, the petitioners will have liberty to challenge the same in a substantive proceeding. Interlocutory Application stands disposed of. (R.M. Doshit, CJ) Dilip. (Ashwani Kumar Singh, J)