The Allahabad High Court recently stayed an order from the project director for the reduction of the salary of computer operators, stenographers, and clerks working in the UP education project. The court said payments should continue as before.
The order was passed by Justice JJ Munir while hearing a petition filed by Manoj Kumar Srivastava and five others. The petitioners have been appointed to various posts of computer operators, stenographers, and clerks, under the project known as “UP Education for all”. The petitioners said that the emoluments were directed to be increased by a decision of the Executive Committee dated December 21, 2017, recommending an increase of 28.7% in the emoluments payable to the employees retained under the Scheme. Now this has been ordered to be reduced by the order of January 15, passed by the state project director.
The petitioners’ lawyer said that respondent has no power to pass any order contrary to the decision of the executive committee of the project board. In addition, it is argued that the impugned order has been passed effecting diminution in the Petitioner’s emoluments without giving them an opportunity of hearing and in utter violation of principles of natural justice.
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The Court has sought an answer from the state government in this matter in four weeks. “Until further orders, operation of the impugned order dated January 15, 2021, passed by the State Project Director, U.P. Education ‘All Project Board’, Vidhya Bhawan, Nishatganj, Lucknow, shall remain suspended and the petitioners shall be paid a salary at the same rate that they were drawing immediately before the order impugned was passed”, the Court ordered. The Court has directed the petitioners to be presented for hearing on June 10.
Source: ILNS