State Of Maharashtra & Ors vs Nowrosjee Wadia College & Ors

2. Dr. Anagha Anant Nadkarni and Dr. Moreshwar J. Bedekar, who were employed as Professors in respondent No.1 college retired from service in November, 2003. They filed applications before Pune University Grievance Committee (for short, ‘the Committee’) for encashment of earned leave. The Committee passed order dated 3.5.2007 and recommended payment of the amount in lieu of earned leave. However, respondent No.1 did not act upon the recommendations of the Committee. Therefore, Dr. Anagha Anant Nadkarni and Dr. Moreshwar J. Bedekar filed Writ Petition Nos.8763 and 8775 of 2007 for issue of a mandamus to respondent No.1 to pay the amount of leave encashment. The same were disposed of by the Division Bench of the Bombay High Court vide order dated 7.4.2008 along with 11 other writ petitions. The Division Bench relied upon order dated 22.1.2007 passed in Writ Petition No.4936/2006 – V. S. Agarkar v. The Chairman, Grievance Cell Committee, Pune University and others and held:

5. After recording the aforesaid observations, the Bench declined to grant leave but gave three months time to the SLP petitioners to comply with the directions given by the High Court.

6. After 3 years of enactment of the 1994 Act, which resulted in repeal of various existing statutes including the Poona University Act, 1974, under which Statutes 424(3) and 424(C) had been framed, the State Government issued instructions to the Universities to discontinue payment of leave encashment to the teachers by pointing out that they fall in the categories of employees working in the ‘Vacation Department’. The State Government also took cognizance of the orders passed by the High Court in Writ Petition No. 2671/2006 and Contempt Petition No. 191/2006 and directed that the University Statutes should be amended with retrospective effect and till then, the concerned University should bear expenses incurred in payment of leave encashment. This was reiterated vide letter dated 20.10.2008 sent by the Director of Education (Higher Education), Maharashtra to all the universities.

10. The Division Bench of the High Court referred to order dated 7.4.2008 passed in Writ Petition No. 8763/2007 and connected matters and disposed of the writ petition vide order dated 24.8.2009 by taking cognizance of the statement made by the Assistant Government Pleader that the amount paid to the teachers will be reimbursed by way of grant. The Director of Higher Education and others filed Civil Application No.2320/2009 for modification of order dated 24.8.2009. The same was disposed of by the High Court on 9.10.2009 by relieving the Assistant Government Pleader of the concession made by him. However, the direction given for reimbursement of the amount paid by the institutions to the teachers in lieu of earned leave was maintained on the premise that order dated 7.4.2008 passed in Writ Petition No.8763/2007 and batch has become final.

(58) to (59) xxx xxx xxx (60) to comply with and carry out any directives issued by the State Government from time to time, with reference to above powers, duties and responsibilities of the university.

(2) The university shall be competent to incur expenditure from the funds received from, -

(c) contributions received from the individuals, industries, institutions, organisations or any person whosoever, to further the objectives of the university;

Provided that, in case the university fails to comply with the directives, the State Government shall call upon the university to give reasons in writing why the directives were not complied with. If the State Government is not satisfied with the explanation, it may refer the matter to the Chancellor for taking necessary action under sub-section (3) of section 9.

(h) the North Maharashtra Universities Act, 1989, shall stand repealed (Mah.XXIX of 1989).

(i) to (xi) xxx xxx xxx

(b) The leave at the credit of a Government servant at the close of the previous half year shall be carried forward to the next half year, subject to the condition that the leave so carried forward plus the credit for the half year do not exceed the limit of 240 days.

52. Vacation Department—A Vacation Department is, subject to the exceptions and to the extent stated in Appendix II, a department or part of a department to which regular vacations are allowed, during which a Government servant serving in the department is permitted to be absent from duty.

Explanation – For the purposes of this rule, the term “year” shall be construed as meaning not calendar year but twelve months actual duty in a Vacation Department.

Note 2.- When a Government servant serving in a Vacation Department proceeds on leave before completing a full year of duty, the earned leave admissible to him shall be calculated not with reference to the vacations which fall during the period of actual duty rendered before proceeding on leave but with reference to the vacations that fall during the year commencing from the date on which he completed the previous year of duty.

1. (a) Under the Directorate of Education, —(i) All Heads of Government Educational Institutions belonging to Class I, II and III.

(iii) Professors, Lecturers, Co-ordinators, Assistant Lecturers etc. in Class I, II and III as the case may be, in Government Training Colleges.

(iv) Physical Instructors in Government Colleges and Secondary Schools.

(v) Laboratory Assistants, Laboratory Attendants in Government Colleges and Secondary Schools.

(vi) Lecturers or other teachers in Government Primary, Middle and Secondary Schools and in Primary Training Institutions and other special Institutions.

(vii) All other staff in Government Institutions excepting those mentioned as belonging to Non-Vacation Department.” Statutes “424. (3). Leave.—

(a)-(b) * * *

(c) Earned leave.—

(a) The confirmed non-vacation teacher shall be entitled to earned leave at the rate of one-eleventh of the period spent on duty subject to his accumulating maximum of 180 days of leave.

424(C). Encashment of unutilised earned leave on superannuation.—The teacher shall be entitled to encash earned leave in balance to his credit on the date of his superannuation subject to a maximum of 180 days.

In case the teacher is required to serve till the end of academic session beyond the date of his superannuation, he shall be entitled to encash the balance of earned leave to his credit on the date of his actual retirement from service.”

22. In the result, the appeals are allowed, the impugned orders are set aside and the writ petition filed by respondent Nos. 1 and 2 is dismissed. The parties are left to bear their own costs.