The Patna High Court dismissed a Petition filed by the Niyojit teachers challenging the withholding of the grade-pay for two years.
The petitioners are Niyojit teachers, who were later appointed as Panchayat teachers and regularized in the service of the Government. The petitioners were given only a fixed pay in their post as honorarium. The State Government by a resolution dated 11.08.2015, implemented a regular pay-scale with respect to both trained and untrained teachers. Insofar as the trained teachers are concerned they also introduced a grade-pay. While the pay-scale was granted to the trained teachers from the date of the order, the grade-pay was withheld for two years.
Manoj Kumar Manoj , counsel for the petitioner submits that there was no logic in withholding the grade-pay for two years. It has also been contended that the Government had taken a very curious reasoning insofar as the denial of grade-pay for two years by stating that two year period is a probation period for the trained teachers. It is pointed out that these teachers were continuing from 2006 and were trained teachers and has been granted the pay-scale as per the 2015 order in which event, the denial of the grade-pay was not proper.
The Government Pleader, however, relied on the counter affidavit to specifically point out that the persons, who were appointed on honorarium were later made Panchayat teachers by the Bihar Panchayat Elementary Teachers (Employment and Service Condition) Rules, 2012. The qualification procedure for selection was framed and the teachers so appointed as Panchayat / Block teachers were provided a fixed salary as Niyojit teachers. Later, the 2015 order came, wherein additional financial benefits were granted to the teachers but, the grade-pay was withheld, not only treating them as probationers for two years but also because of financial reasons and other constraints.
The Government Advocate also relies on the judgment of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in Civil Appeal No. 8329 of 2011 titled as Union of India Indian v. Navy Civilian Design Officers Association and Another; 2023 SCC OnLine SC 173, wherein it is categorically declared that the grant of equal pay for equal work, conferment of scales etc. are in the exclusive domain of the State and there can be no judicial orders passed interfering with the same.
The Division Bench of Chief Justice K. Vinod Chandran and Justice Partha Sarthy specifically noted the decision of the Supreme Court in State of Bihar v. Bihar Secondary Teachers Struggle Committee, (2019) 18 SCC 301, wherein the question of equal pay for equal work in two cadres existing within the State of Bihar was agitated before the Hon’ble Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court specifically took into account the financial constraints as pleaded by the State to find that there is no question of such equal pay being granted to persons, who are appointed as Niyojit teachers, who are not equally situated as the regular teachers in the Government schools with a regular scale of pay.
“It is trite that grant of scales of pay is the prerogative of the employer-the State and in this case, the benefit of a regular scale of pay was granted by the order in 2015; till which time the teachers were entitled to only a fixed pay. When such scales of pay were granted, the Government also thought it fit to give a grade-pay to trained teachers as distinguished from untrained teachers. However, the grade-pay was withheld for initial two years for which the specific ground taken in the counter affidavit is the paucity of financial resources and other constraints”, the Court observed.
The Court opined that there cannot be a challenge raised to the withholding of the grade-pay for two years, especially when the benefit itself was conferred by the notification, which the petitioner challenged before the Court.