Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, Nov 17: The Division Bench of High Court set aside the writ court judgment granting retiral benefits to the employees of State Road Transport Corporation (SRTC) at par with the employees of earlier Government Transport Undertaking (GTU) and left it to the Government to take note of the communication of the Corporation in this regard and convey its decision as it finds appropriate.
The Writ Court in January last year after considering the rival contentions and having gone through the record, found substance in the case set up by the employees of Corporation and allowed their plea and held that they are entitled to all retiral benefits on a par with and on the analogy of section of employees of Corporation who were earlier the employees of erstwhile GTU and had opted for the services of the Corporation.
The Writ Court had also drawn analogy from the similarly situated employees of JK Industries who too had been held entitled to pensionary benefits by the Court and directed the Government to consider the request of the Corporation made through its Managing Director.
The employees were also held entitled by the writ court to arrears of necessary dues as might be payable to them from the date of their retirement.
The judgment came to be challenged in an appeal and the Division Bench of Justice Sanjeev Kumar and Justice Wasim Sadiq Nargal found the writ petitioner-employees are not similarly situated with the class of employees of the erstwhile GTU who were given fresh opportunity to make option in 1986.
“We are convinced that the view of the Writ Court holding the writ petitioners entitled to pensionary benefits, more particularly when the Rules and Regulations of 1979 applicable to the writ petitioners declare their service non-pensionable, is totally erroneous and unsustainable”, the DB recorded.
“We also do not dispute the power of the Corporation to take an informed decision with regard to the service benefits including the post retiral benefits to be given to its employees. This would all depend upon the policy decision in this regard, to be taken by the Corporation, having regard to several factors including its financial health”, read the judgment.
The DB has held that the Court cannot issue a direction to the Corporation to provide or not to provide a particular service benefit as the Regulations are elaborate on the subject and the clear position that emerges from reading of the regulations, which is that the employees appointed to the Corporation (Corporation borne employees) are not entitled to superannuation pension. They, however, are entitled to certain other post retiral benefits in lieu of pension.
Court while taking to the decision of the Board of Directors taken in its 81st meeting and the communication of the Managing Director said it only reiterates the decision of the Board of Directors. Court as such left it to the Government to take note of the communication of the Corporation and convey its decision as it finds appropriate, provided the same has not already been conveyed.
“Needless to say that the Corporation is also free if it so chooses to provide any service benefits to its employees including pension by acting strictly within the mandate of the Act of 1950 and rules and regulations framed thereunder by the Corporation. For the foregoing reasons, we find merit in this appeal. Accordingly, the appeal is allowed and the impugned judgment is set aside. Consequently, the writ petition shall also stand dismissed”, the Court concluded.
The DB gave its anxious consideration to the counsel of employees and said the same is not tenable for more than one reason as there is not enough material placed on record by the writ petitioners to show similarity in all respects with the employees of erstwhile GTU who were given option in the year 1986 to opt for the services of the Corporation retaining their status as Government employees.
“We find clear and subtle distinction between these two classes of employees. Indisputably, the petitioners are the Corporation borne employees i.e the employees recruited to the Corporation and, therefore, cannot by any stretch of reasoning, claim the status of Government employees. The employees of erstwhile GTU were admittedly the Government employees and entitled to all service benefits including pensionary benefits available to the Government employees serving in other Government Departments”, read the judgment.
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