IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA CWJC No.4344 of 2007 Nawal Kishor Singh, son of late Parmanand Singh, resident of Village+Post Shakara, P.S. G.B. Nagar, Dist. Siwan. ------- Petitioner Versus 1. The State of Bihar through Chief Secretary, Old Secretariat Building, Patna. 2. Secretary, Finance Department, State of Bihar. 3. Secretary, Human Resources Department (Secondary Education), Bihar. 4. Director, Secondary Education Board, Budh Marg, Patna. 5. The District Education Officer, Siwan. ------- Respondents ----------- 6 17.08.2011 Having heard learned counsel for the parties in relation to the following relief:- “1(i) For direction to the respondents authorities to pay the salary of the petitioner from 01.10.1978 to 01.10.1980 alongwith statutory as well as penal interest. (ii) For further direction to the respondent authorities to consider 01.10.1978 as appointment date of petitioner on the post of clerk at Gandak High School, Tarwara, District Siwan and give all monetary and consequential benefits to the petitioner.” and the fact that the respondents have already made payment of salary for the aforesaid period as is not only admitted by the learned counsel for the petitioner but also asserted in the supplementary counter affidavit filed to day, this Court would deem 2 it expedient in the ends of justice to close the matter here and now, inasmuch as, this Court does not find any merit in the claim of payment of interest for such delayed payment of salary of the petitioner. The District Education Officer cannot be said to be have failed in his duty by not making payment of such amount of salary to the petitioner of a period prior to take over of the school of the petitioner i.e. from 1.10.1978 to 1.10.1980. It has to be kept in mind that the petitioner’s services could not be recognized when the school with the other working teachers and Clerk was recognized by the Madhyamik Shiksha Board on 11.4.1978, inasmuch as, two persons namely Mr. B.N. Singh and this petitioner were shown to be the two Clerks against one sanctioned post of Clerk and the service of Mr. B.N. Singh being senior and appointed in 1971 was recognized as the Clerk of the school. Subsequently, when the school was taken over by the State Government with effect from 2.10.1980, his services were again not taken over and only 3 on 30.11.1981, his services were taken over as Clerk from the date of such order on an impressin created that Mr. B.N. Singh was not working on the post of Clerk in the school. It was only when this Court had, in the earlier round of litigation at the instance of the petitioner being CWJC No. 418 of 1982 by an order dated 10.9.1987, had remitted the matter back for reconsideration of his case by the authorities and the authorities had ultimately given the petitioner the benefit of past service from October, 1978 on the ground of attendance register produced as also unfavourable report of the Headmaster against Mr. B.N. Singh but then such period prior to 2.10.1980 could not have been regularized by the Education Department for payment of salary of the petitioner without prior approval of the Finance Department. Thus, the payment of salary of the petitioner prior to 2.10.1980 would not have been made by the District Education Officer as was sought to be impressed by the learned counsel for the petitioner during pendency of this writ application, leading to a number of 4 interim orders in this case asking the District Education Officer to show-cause for not meeting the liability of payment of his salary with interest for the period prior to 2.10.1980. In that view of the matter, the payment having been now made after the approval of the Finance Department, the cause of action and the grievance raised by the petitioner in this writ application stands redressed. The petitioner may, on the basis of his approval of service from October, 1978, can now get his revised retirement benefit by treating the aforesaid period towards the qualifying service but, nothing more will be admissible to him. With the aforementioned observation and direction, this application is disposed of. Rsh (Mihir Kumar Jha, J.)