U.P.
Income-Tax Department Contingent Paid State Welfare Vs. Union of India &
Ors [1987] INSC 359 (4 December 1987)
VENKATARAMIAH,
E.S. (J) VENKATARAMIAH, E.S. (J) SINGH, K.N. (J) CITATION: 1988 AIR 517 1988
SCR (2) 170 1987 SCC Supl. 658 JT 1987 (4) 585 1987 SCALE (2)1222
CITATOR
INFO :
R
1988 SC 519 (4) F 1990 SC 883 (8)
ACT:
Contingent
Paid Staff-Regularisation of their Services.
HEADNOTE:
%
The petitioner, the Association of the U.P. Income-tax Department Contingent.
Paid Staff is aggrieved that even though its members have been rendering
service as class IV employees in the U.P. Income-tax Department for a large
number of years, the Department is not regularising their services and
absorbing them in the class lV services, and they are being paid wages as daily
rated labourers, lower than the salary and allowances paid to the class IV
employees of the Department. The petitioner filed a Writ Petition in this
Court, praying for a writ of mandamus for the relief above-mentioned.
Allowing
the petition, the Court, ^
HELD:
The questions involved in this case are almost the same as in the Writ
Petitions Nos. 373 and 302 of 1986, decided by this Court by its judgment dated
October 27, 1987, reported in Daily Rated Casual Labour Employed under P
Union
of India and Ors. (JT. 1987 [4] S.C. 164), and the same orders/directions as
given in that case, be passed in this case. Accordingly, respondents directed
to pay wage. to the workmen employed as contingent paid staff of the Income-
tax Department throughout India, doing the work of class IV employees at the
rates equivalent to the minimum pay in the pay scale of the regularly employed
workers in the corresponding cadres, without any increments with effect from
December 1, 1986. Such workmen are also entitled to corresponding dearness
allowance and additional dearness allowance payable thereon. Whatever other
benefits are now being enjoyed by the said workmen shall continue to be
extended to them. The respondents shall prepare a scheme on a rational basis
for absorbing as far as possible the contingent paid staff of the Income-tax
Department, who have been continuously working for more than one year as Class
lV employees in the Income-tax Department. [l7lH; 172H; 173A-C] 171 &
ORIGINAL JURISDICTION: Writ Petition (Civil) No. 1670 of 1986. (Under Article
32 of the Constitution of India). R.C. Kaushik for the Petitioner. V.C.
Mahajan, Ms. A. Subhashini and Girish Chandra for the Respondents.
The
following order of the Court was delivered O R D E R This is a petition under
Article 32 of the Constitution of India.
The
petitioner in this case is the U.P. Income-tax Department Contingent Paid Staff
Welfare Association. The members of the said association, as the name of the
Association itself suggests, are the contingent paid staff in the Income-tax
Department. Their complaint is that even though they have been rendering the
service as Class IV employees in the Income-tax Department for a large number
of years, the Income-tax Department has not taken steps to regularise their
services and to absorb them as members of the Class IV services and that they
are being paid wages as daily rated labourers lower than the salary and
allowances which the Class IV employees of the Department have been drawing. They
pray for the issue of a writ in the nature of mandamus to the respondents to
pay them the same salary and allowances which are paid to the employees of the
Department in corresponding posts and also for regularising their service. A
counter-affidavit has been filed on behalf of the respondents. The respondents
do not deny that the contingent paid staff are being paid daily wages lower
than what is being paid to regular employees. It also refers to certain
Government order providing for regularisation under certain terms and
conditions.
When
this petition came up for admission the Court directed that this case should be
listed after the disposal of the Writ Petitions No. 373 and 302 of 1986
instituted by the daily rated casual labour employed in the Posts and Telegraph
Department, since the questions involved in this case and in those two writ
petitions were almost the same.
By
its judgment dated 27.10.1987 in Daily Rated Casual Labour employed under P
& T Department 172 though Bhartiya Dak Tar Mazdoor Manch v. Union of lndia
& Ors., (JT. 1987 4 S.C. 164, this Court has issued the following
directions as regards the claim of the daily rated workmen involved therein for
higher wages:- "We accordingly direct the Union of India and the other
respondents to pay wages to the workmen who are employed as casual labourers
belonging to the several categories of employees referred to above in the Posts
& Telegraph Department at the rates equivalent to the minimum pay in the
pay scales of the regularly employed workers in the corresponding cadres but
without any increments with effect from 5th February, 1986 on which date the
first of the above two petitions, namely, Writ Petition No. 302 of 1986 was
filed. The petitioners are entitled to corresponding Dearness Allowance and
Additional Dearness Allowance? if any, payable thereon. Whatever other benefits
which are now being enjoyed by the casual labourers shall continue to be
extended to them." On the claim for regularisation of the services of the
workmen involved in the above-mentioned case, this Court issued the following
direction:- "We, therefore, direct all the respondents to prepare a scheme
on a rational basis for absorbing as far as possible the casual labourers who
have been continuously working for more than one year in the Posts and
Telegraph Department." The facts and circumstances of the present case are
similar to the facts and circumstances of the case relating to the daily rated
labour in the Posts and Telegraph Department. We have carefully considered the
pleas in the counter-affidavit. The Government orders providing for the
absorption of the contingent paid staff are hedged in by a number of
conditions. We also find that many such employees have been working on daily
wages for nearly eight years and more. We are not satisfied with the scheme
which is now in force. We are, therefore, of the view that in this case also we
should issue the same directions as in the above decision for the reasons given
by the Court in the above decision. We accordingly allow this Writ Petition and
direct the respondents to pay wages to the workmen who are employed as the
contingent paid staff of the Income-tax Department 173 throughout India, doing
the work of Class IV employees at the A rates equivalent to the minimum pay in
the pay-scale of the regularly employed workers in the corresponding cadres,
without any increments with effect from 1st December, 1986. Such workmen are
also entitled to corresponding Dearness Allowance and Additional Dearness
Allowance payable thereon Whatever other benefits which are now being enjoyed
by the said workman shall continue to be extended to them. We further direct
the respondents to prepare a scheme on a rational basis for absorbing as far as
possible the contingent paid staff of the Income-tax Department who have been
continuously working for more than one year as Class IV employees in the
Income-tax Department.
This
petition is accordingly disposed of with no order as to costs.
S.L.
Petition allowed.
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