Sanjiv Kaushik vs Union Of India

Heard learned counsel for the parties.

By filing this OA, the applicants are seeking the following reliefs:-

"(a) to issue a direction to the respondents to continue payment of HPCA/PCA and working allowance and quash the practice of not paying the above allowances to the applicants;

(b) to declare that the erstwhile group C employees who had been getting HPCA/PCA and washing allowance would continue to get said allowances notwithstanding the fact that they have been designated group B post as per the new recommendations as long as their functional responsibilities and duties remain the same.

(c) to direct that the respondents shall not affect any recovery from the applicants and refund the recovery of HPCA/PCA and washing allowance so made.

(d) to direct the release the arrears HPCA/PCA and washing allowance for the period the same has not been paid to the applicants.

(e) any other interim relief(s), order(s), which this Hon'ble Tribunal deems fit and proper in the eyes of law in favour of the applicants.:

Brief facts of the case are that all the applicants, who were recruited as Lab Technicians and Senior Lab Technicians are working as Medical Lab Technologists, except one who is working as Technical Officer (MLT-Medical Laboratory Technologist) under respondents.

The grievance of the applicants is against the action of the respondents of stoppage of payment of HPCA/PCA and washing allowance without any show cause notice and without affecting any change in the nature of duties and functions performed by them as their duties and functions are the same after the change in the nomenclature as Medical Lab Technologists terming it as a Group B post instead of earlier designation of Lab Technologist a Group C post.

So far as grant of washing allowance is concerned, since VIIth CPC abolished it and as a separate allowance, subsumed in the newly proposed Dress Allowance, this issue cannot be sustainable in the eyes of law.

So far as grant of HPCA/PCA is concerned, the similar issue has come up before this Tribunal in OA No.527/2016 (N.K. Popli and others vs. Union of India and others) and this Tribunal vide Order dated 12.1.2018 allowed the said OA with certain directions to the respondents, the relevant part of the said Order reads as under:-

"11. As has already been noted above, the sole issue involved in this case is that whether the applicants, who are holding the post of Senior Radiographer (Group-C post) which has now been upgraded to Group-B post, are entitled to the HPCA as has been granted to them prior to upgradation of the post to Group-B.

I have gone through the decision of the Madras Bench of this Tribunal in the matter of Banumathy Mohanakrishnan & Anr. Vs. Union of India & Ors.(supra) wherein similar and identical issue was involved and the said decision has attained finality after travelling upto the Hon'ble Apex Court. It is seen that the ground taken by the respondents in this OA to deny the HPCA to the applicants has already been taken care by the Madras Bench of this Tribunal and held that mere grant of higher pay scale in accordance with the recommendations of the Pay Commission would not ipso facto mean that there is a change of grade from Group-C to Group-B automatically and the action of the respondents in denying the HPCA was held to be erroneous. The said decision was upheld even upto the Hon'ble Apex Court.

In view of the above discussion, I am satisfied that the instant OA is fully covered by the decision of the Madras Bench of this Tribunal and the OA deserves to be allowed on parity. Accordingly, the OA is allowed and the impugned order dated 11.05.2015 passed by the respondents is quashed and set aside.The respondents are directed to restore the payment of HPCA to the applicants forthwith and no recovery shall take effect and if any recovery made in this behalf relating to excess payment shall be refunded to the applicants within four weeks from the date of receipt of certified copy of this order. There shall be no order as to costs."

Counsel for the applicants also produced a copy of Order dated 29.8.2018 passed by Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, New Delhi in compliance of the aforesaid Order of this Tribunal, the contents of which reads as under:-

"Sub: Implementation of Hon'ble CAT Order dated 12.01.2018 in OA No.527/2018 filed by Sh. N.K. Popli & Ors. vs. UOI in CAT (PB), New Delhi - Reg. In pursuance of M/o. Health & F. W. letter No.Z. 28015/14/2017-H-II dated 28.08.2018 on the subject mentioned above, I am directed to state that the Competent Authority has agreed to grant and restore the payment of HPCA to all the following 12 (twelve) applicants in OA No.527/2018 filed by Sh. N.K. Popli & Ors. Vs UOI in CAT (PB), New Delhi and no recovery shall take effect and if any recovery made in this behalf relating to excess payment shall be refunded to the applicant.

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This issues in consultation with the Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance vide their ID No.A-27023/2017/E.II B/7th CPC/Pt dated 24.08.2018."

Since there is no change in the duties and responsibilities of the applicants upon change of grade from Group-C to Group-B, the action of the respondents in denying the HPCA was erroneous as held by the Madras Bench of this Tribunal in Banumathy Mohanakrishnan & Anr. Vs. Union of India & Ors.(supra) and the said decision was upheld even upto the Hon'ble Supreme Court.

Counsel for the respondents has not disputed the aforesaid factual position of the matter.

In view of the fact that similar issue as raised in this OA with regard to HPCA/PCA has already been adjudicated by this Tribunal in OA 827/2016 and decided on 12.1.2018 and the said Order has also been implemented by this respondents, as referred to above, this Court is of the considered view that the present OA is also required to be allowed in the same terms as in OA No.827/2016. Accordingly, the present OA is allowed. The respondents are directed to restore the payment of HPCA to the applicants forthwith and no recovery shall take effect and if any recovery made in this behalf relating to excess payment shall be refunded to the applicant within four weeks from the date of receipt of certified copy of this Order. There shall be no order as to costs.