IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE, ANDHRA PRADESH AT HYDERABAD (Special Original Jurisdiction) WEDNESDAY, THE SIXTH DAY OF OCTOBER TWO THOUSAND AND TEN PRESENT THE HON'BLE SRI JUSTICE SANJAY KUMAR WRIT PETITION No : 20024 of 2010 Between: P.Raghu. ..... Petitioner. AND APSRTC, Rep.by it s Managing Director, Bus Bhavan, RTC ‘X’ Road, Hyderabad and another. .....Respondents. THE HON'BLE SRI JUSTICE SANJAY KUMAR WRIT PETITION No : 20024 of 2010 ORDER: The petitioner, who retired from the service of the Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) as a driver, challenges its proceedings dated 14.06.2010 rejecting his representation for allowing him Earned Leave/Half Pay Leave (PA) & Half Pay Leave (MC), on the ground that the same could be allowed only for the period actually spent on duty and not otherwise. Admittedly, the petitioner who was removed from service earlier was reinstated pursuant to the Award dated 12.3.1994 passed by the Labour Court-1, Andhra Pradesh, Hyderabad in I.D.No.348/1993. By the said Award, the Labour Court set aside the order of removal from service passed against the petitioner and directed the APSRTC to reinstate him in service with full backwages and all other attendant benefits with continuity of service. Further, the said Award attained finality as it was not interfered with by this Court (W.P.No.25160 of 1994 & W.A.No.1852 of 2003). The issue of entitlement of an employee to claim the benefit of earned leave and half-pay leave for the period that he remained out of service in these cases stands settled by the decision of this Court in W.P.No.17348 of 2001. A learned Judge of this Court by order dated 18.3.2002 held therein that the removal period shall be treated as qualified service for the purpose of payment of gratuity and also earned leave. This order stood confirmed in W.A.No.1125 of 2002. By order dated 22.8.2003, a Division Bench of this Court held therein that there was no justification for the APSRTC not to treat the period of absence as qualified service for the purpose of payment of gratuity and encashment of earned leave. It is fairly conceded by Sri K.Madhava Reddy, learned Standing Counsel for the APSRTC, that the S.L.P filed by the APSRTC against the Division Bench order was dismissed at the threshold. In that view of the matter, the impugned order dated 14.6.2010 denying the petitioner the benefit of encashment of earned and half pay leave only on the ground that he did not render duty during the removal period cannot be countenanced. Once the Labour Court granted him continuity of service along with all other attendant benefits, the period that the petitioner remained out of service must be treated as qualified service for the purpose of encashment of leave, both earned as well as on half pay. The said order is accordingly set aside and the APSRTC is directed to extend the benefit of encashment of earned and half pay leave to the petitioner as per his entitlement. The writ petition is allowed but in the circumstances without any order as to costs. ____________________________ JUSTICE SANJAY KUMAR Date: 06.10.2010 mrb