IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA CWJC No.11660 of 2006 Umesh Chandra Jha, Son of late Kartik Jha, Resident of Village Simra, P.O. and P.S. Nawgachiya, District Bhagalpur. ---------- Petitioner Versus 1. The State of Bihar. 2. The Health Commissioner, Government of Bihar, Patna. 3. Director in Chief, Health Services, Bihar, Patna. 4. Civil Surgeon, Bhagalpur. 5. Civil Surgeon, Deoghar, Jharkhand. ------- Respondents ----------- 2 20.08.2010 No one appears on behalf of the petitioner. Counsel for the State of Bihar and State of Jharkhand are present. Counsel for the State of Bihar with regard to the following prayer in the writ application:- “1. That the present application is for issuance of a writ in the nature of mandamus directing the respondents to pay the petitioner 2.5% promotional benefit in Super time Senior selection Grade and accordingly revised pension alongwith interest from 01.04.1986 as given in other cases.” would draw attention of this Court towards paragraph no.6 & 8 of the counter affidavit, which reads as follows:- “6. That it is stated that the petitioner had been transferred to District Deoghar, now in State of Jharkhand on 01.03.93 and had retired there on 31.12.94. The pay scale of clerk 2 before the retirement of this petitioner was as following vide finance department resolution no. 6021(2) dated 18.12.89 and a copy of scheduled I thereto is being brought on record. (i) Basic pay scale of Clerk Rs. 580-860. (ii) 20% Junior selection Grade H.C. Rs. 680-965 Unrevised scale 340- 490) (iii) 12.5% Senior selection Grade H.C. Rs. 730-1080 (as per memo no.2071) dated 8.4.1987). (iv) 2.5% Super time scale Rs. 785- 1080. (v) Office Superintendent Rs. 850- 1360. 7. That it is stated that the petitioner had already got the pay scale of 20% Junior Selection grade, 12.5% senior Selection Grade, 2.5% Super time scale already stated above. Now the petitioner wants following benefits. (i) Replacement scale of 785-1200 in to 1500-2750 from 01.01.86. (ii) Super time promotion 2.5% in the scale of 1600-2780. Replacement scale of 785-1210 is 1400-2600 and it is the scale of 2.5% Super time scale which has already been paid to the petitioner since 01.03.86 scale of Rs. 1500-2750 is not a replacement scale of 785-1210. 8. That it is stated that the pay scale of Rs. 1600-2700 is the revised scale of Rs. 850-1360 which is the pay scale 3 of office Superintendent and the said post of office Superintendent is not sanctioned in the Surgency.” In view of the aforesaid statement of the respondents, which has not been denied by the counsel for the petitioner by filing rejoinder to the counter affidavit despite service of copy of the counter affidavit on the counsel for the petitioner on 21.2.2007, this Court must hold that the prayer of the petitioner claiming monetary benefit w.e.f. 1.4.1986 is wholly misconceived specially when the petitioner having retired from service on 31.12.1994, had chosen to raise such a belated and stale claim by filing the present writ application on 20.09.2006 after more than twenty years of his cause of action. Thus both on account of delay delay and laches on the part of the petitioner as also on merit, this Court would find no reason to interfere in the matter. That being so, this application is wholly misconceived and the same is, accordingly, dismissed. Rsh (Mihir Kumar Jha, J.)