1 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY BENCH AT AURANGABAD. WRIT PETITION NO. 1553 OF 1994 1] Shankar Babli Kadu Age 45 years, Occu. Service, R/o Aurangabad, Dist. Aurangabad. 2] Brahmadeo S/o Bhaldeo Lad, Age 36 years, Occu. & R/o as above. 3] Shrikant S/o Khanderao Nighwekar, Age 35 years, Occu. & Resident as above. 4] Shankar S/o Nana Sakat, Age 42 years, Occu. & r/o as above. 5] Prakash S/o Baburao Dole, Age 33 years, Occu. & r/o as above. 6] Wamanrao S/o Shamrao Kulkarni, Age 35 years, Occu. & R/o as above .. PETITIONERS. VERSUS 1] The State of Maharashtra Through its Principal Secretary, Law & Judiciary Department, Mantralaya, Bombay. 2] The Registrar, High Court, Appellate Side, Bombay – 400 032. 3] The Additional Registrar, High Court of Bombay, Aurangabad Bench, Aurangabad. ..RESPONDENTS 2 ... Shri S.B. Talekar, Advocate for Petitioners. Shri V.D. Rakh, A.G.P. for respondents State CORAM :- B.R.GAVAI AND S.V. GANGAPURWALA JJ. DATE : 9th June, 2010. ORAL JUDGMENT: The petition has been filed by the petitioners with two fold reliefs. The petitioners are working in the establishment of High Court. It is submitted by the petitioners that though the special pay is made applicable to Chaopdars working in the establishment of his Excellency the Governor, the Hon’ble Ministers, the Hon’ble chairman and Hon’ble Speaker, in sofar as Chopdars attached to the Hon’ble Judges are concerned,the same been discontinued. Another grievance of the petitioners is that, according to the recommendations of the Bhole Commission and the Equivalence Committee, the higher pay scale has been made applicable to the petitioners from the August, 1990, whereas Insofar as the other employees working with the Government are concerned it is made applicable from 01/01/1986. It is further submitted that,this has resulted in 3 the patent discretion. 2. Insofar as second relief is concerned from the affidavits in reply, which are placed on record, it is amply clear that though the notification making revised pay scale applicable to the employees of the High Court like petitioners was issued on 16/05/1990, the same has been given retrospective effect with effect from 01/01/1986. In that view of the matter we find that the grievance insofar as this aspect is concerned no more survives. 3. That, leaves us only to decide as to whether the action of the respondents /State in withdrawing the special pay, which was granted to the dignitaries mentioned above, only insofar as the Chopdar attached to the High Court Judges concerned is justifiable or not. 4. The stand taken by the State Government is two fold. Firstly, it is submitted that since, and as per the report of Bhole Committee and Equivalence committee the pay scale of Rs. 4 900-1400 were made applicable to the Chopdars. it was not not found necessary to continue with the special pay. It is further submitted that insofar as the Chopdars who are working in the establishment of the Hon’ble Ministers are concerned, they are working in different departments of Mantralaya and attached to the Hon’ble Ministers on deputation. It is therefore, submitted that the Chopdars/Jamdars on Ministerial establishment cannot be compared with Jamdars/chopdars of the High Court while considering this aspect of special pay. We find that the stand taken by the State Government is not justifiable at all. Though the revised pay scale of Rs. 950-1400 was made applicable to the chopdars/Jamadars, in so far as special pay is concerned, same was withdrawn in respect of chopdars/Jamadars working in the establishment of High Court judges, while continuing the same with the chopdars/Jamadars of all the other dignitaries. The decision taken by the State Government that since Jamadars/ Chopdars on the establishment of the Hon’ble Ministers are on deputation from the different departments of 5 Mantralaya, they cannot be compared with the Jamadars/ Chopdars of the High Court who were on the establishment of High Court, is also patently arbitrary. The departments of the Government in Mantrtalaya so also office of the Hon’ble Ministers are situated in the same building, may be on different floors. The chopdars attached to the Hon’ble Ministers are in the establishment of the Mantralaya. The Chopdar which are attached to the Judges of the High Court are also at time’s required to work on other departments of the High Court when they are not working with the Judges. We do not find that there is any difference in the nature of duties performed by Jamdars /Chopdars of the High Court Judges and the Jamadars/Chopdars of the other Hon’ble dignitaries mentioned here-in-above. We are therefore, of the considered view that the action of the /State in withdrawing the special pay only so far as the chopdar /Jamadar working in the establishment of High court, while retaining the same in so far as the Jamadars / chopdars of other Hon’ble dignitaries, is totally unsustainable in law. The nature of duties 6 performed by the chopdar / Jamadar working in the establishment of High Court, so also the other Hon’ble dignitaries is almost identical. Only justification, that since the Chopdars/Jamadars working with the Hon’ble Minister are on deputation from the other departments, is without any rational basis. Since the nature of work of all the Chopdars/Jamadars is same, they are also entitles to special pay on the principle of “ equal pay for equal work”. 5. In that view of the matter, we are inclined to partly allow the petition. Rule is made absolute by directing the respondent No. 1 to make applicable the special pay to Jamadars / Chopdars of the High Court judges as has been made applicable to the Jamadars / Chopdars of His Excellency Governor, Hon’ble Ministers and Hon’ble Chairman and Hon’ble Speaker. 6. It is needless to state that petitioners and Chopdars/Jamadars working on the establishment of the High Court should be paid arrears of the special pay within six months from 7 today. The arrears to be calculated from the date on which special pay was withdrawn by the respondent No. 1. [S.V. GANGAPURWALA, J ] [B.R.GAVAI, J ] SDM* 1553.94 WP(J)