Case: SHAKTI PRASAD BHATT AND OTHERS Vs. THE STATE OF UTTARAKHAND AND ORS

3. The order passed on 11.04.2017 by the Single Bench of the High Court of Uttrakhand at Nainital in W.P. No.2372 of 2015 filed by Uttarakhand Sahakari Sangarh Kurk Amin Parishad, of granting benefit of past services for the purpose of selection grade, promotional scale and post-retiral benefits including pension etc. from due date, has been set aside by the Division Bench, the Single Bench has granted the following relief:      ?Accordingly, the present petitions are disposed of in terms of the judgment cited hereinabove. The respondents are directed to grant the ACP to the petitioners and to count the past services of the petitioners for the purpose of selection grade, promotional scale and post-retiral benefits including pension etc. from due date within a period of ten weeks from today.?      4. The facts, in short, indicate that in the year 1978 onwards pursuant to the scheme of UP Government Kurk Amins were appointed for realising outstanding dues of the cooperative societies. Their appointment, salary, service conditions were governed under the scheme. The Government?s earlier decision to pay them on salary basis was withdrawn and they were asked to work on commission basis. Since Kurk Amins did not agree to work on commission basis, their services were dispensed with.      5. In the year 1980, the Kurk Amins filed a writ petition before the High Court of Allahabad whose services were terminated or who did not agree to be paid on commission basis.      6. On 16.11.1985, the High Court of Allahabad quashed the order of termination and granted relief by holding that Kurk Amins were Government servants holding civil posts and hence are entitled to be treated in the same way as others in the services of Government of U.P.      7. In the year 1995 one Chandra Prakash Pandey filed a writ petition seeking a direction to the State Government to place him and others in the regular pay scale, which were being paid to Kurk Amins of Revenue Department.      8. The Single Bench of the High Court allowed the prayer as contained in the writ petition. Against which, a Special appeal was preferred before the Division Bench of the High Court and the Division Bench on 5.5.1995 affirmed the judgment passed by the Single Bench.      9. In the year 1996, the U.P. Sahakari Sangarsh Karamchari Sangh filed another Writ Petition. The Division Bench of High Court following the decision rendered in CMWP No.738 of 1980 held that the principle laid down in the aforesaid case also applied to the case of Kurk Amins appointed on the commission basis as they both stood on the same footing. The said decision was challenged before this Court. This Court remitted the matter for fresh consideration of the High Court.      10. The High Court vide judgment and order dated 22.3.1996 held that Kurk Amins appointed on commission basis were to be treated at par with the Kurk Amins appointed on regular basis.      11. Against the above order Special appeal was preferred before the High Court and the Division Bench on 4.4.1997 affirmed the said decision.

Court's reasoning:
19. In our considered opinion, once State has been reorganised, the past service of Kurk Amins could not have been wiped off and the benefit of the judgment rendered by this Court as well as by the High Court of Allahabad was clearly available to the said Kurk Amins whose services had been allocated to the State of Uttrakhand. The services rendered in the State of U.P. could not have been wiped off for the purposes of grant of selection grade, promotion scale, post retiral benefits including pension etc. as has been done by the High Court. The judgment is not in accordance with law and just benefit has been taken away for no good reason and is against the basic principles of service jurisprudence and merely by the act of bifurcation of the State the incumbents were not supposed to lose their services for the purpose of pensionary and other benefits. Thus, the past services have to be counted for all purposes and cannot be wiped off including for the purpose of selection grade promotional scale, post retiral benefits and pension.