Karnataka High Court Clubs Minimum Wage Pleas With Pending Appeals, Later Decides To Hear Them Itself After Division Bench Reserves Verdict In Appeals On Same Day

In a significant development, the Karnataka High Court initially directed that a batch of petitions challenging the State Government's notification revising minimum wages for 81 scheduled employments be clubbed with connected appeals pending before a Division Bench. In a notable twist, after being informed that the connected appeals before the Division Bench had been disposed of on the same...

Right To Retirement Benefits Accrues From Length Of Service, Not Attached To Post: Allahabad High Court

The Allahabad High Court has held that the right to retirement benefits flows from the length of service rendered by an employee and is not linked to the post held. It directed the State to pay pension, gratuity and other retirement benefits to a Junior Clerk whose services were terminated in 2000 on the ground that there was no vacant post against which he could have been appointed, noting...

No Vigilance Probe Against UP IAS Officer On Complaint Without Affidavit Or State Vigilance Committee Approval: Allahabad High Court

The Allahabad High Court has held that a complaint against a Class-I officer of the State which is not backed by an affidavit, as required by the Government Orders governing complaints against Group-A officers, cannot be made the basis of a vigilance inquiry, particularly when the matter has not been placed before the State Vigilance Committee for approval. It quashed the vigilance...

Principal Employer Not Liable To Pay Gratuity To Contractual Workmen; Controlling Authority Can't Decide Who Must Pay : Supreme Court

The Supreme Court has held that a principal employer cannot be held liable to pay gratuity to workers engaged through a contractor when there is no employer-employee relationship between the principal employer and such contractual workmen.The Court set aside a Bombay High Court order holding Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Ltd. (ONGC) liable to pay gratuity to workers engaged through...

Non-Disclosure Of Previous Cancelled Appointment No Ground To Annul Later Appointment Secured On Genuine Qualifications: Allahabad High Court

The Allahabad High Court has held that an appointment obtained on the strength of genuine qualifications cannot be cancelled merely because the appointee did not disclose that an earlier appointment of his had been cancelled, where that fact had no bearing on his eligibility or selection. It held that such non-disclosure can justify cancellation only if a clear and direct link...

Uncorroborated Newspaper Report Not Substantive Evidence Of Misconduct In Departmental Inquiry: Patna High Court

The Patna High Court has held that an uncorroborated newspaper report cannot constitute substantive proof of misconduct in a departmental proceeding, particularly where the report is contradicted by contemporaneous official records.A Single Judge Bench of Justice Kumar Manish was hearing a petition filed by Pankaj Kumar challenging the departmental proceedings and punishment imposed upon...

Govt Employee's Suspension Cannot Continue Beyond 3 Months Without Charge-Sheet: Jharkhand High Court

The Jharkhand High Court has reiterated that a government employee's suspension cannot ordinarily continue beyond three months where no charge-sheet has been served, holding that prolonged suspension without initiation of disciplinary proceedings cannot be permitted to operate as a form of punishment.A Division Bench of Justice Sujit Narayan Prasad and Justice Sanjay Prasad was hearing a...

Fresh Direct Appointment Confers No Promotional Increment Or Past-Service Benefits Absent Statutory Entitlement: HP High Court

The Himachal Pradesh High Court has held that past service rendered on a lower post cannot be counted towards service on a higher post for claiming service benefits unless the applicable Recruitment and Promotion Rules expressly permit such counting. The Court made the observation while dismissing a plea by a former Dai seeking to club her service as Dai with her subsequent service as...

Objective Test For Compassionate Appointment Applicants Reasonable When Vacancies Are Limited: Allahabad High Court

The Allahabad High Court has held that where more dependants apply for compassionate appointment than there are posts earmarked for them, requiring the candidates to sit in an objective type test is not an unreasonable way of choosing between them. It rejected the challenge to the note appended to rule 5(1) of the Uttar Pradesh Sub-Inspector and Inspector (Civil Police) Service Rules, 2015,...

Forged TET Certificate Renders Appointment Void Ab Initio, No Regular Departmental Enquiry Needed Before Termination: Allahabad High Court

The Allahabad High Court has held that where the certificate on which a public appointment rests is found to be forged, the appointment is void ab initio and its cancellation is not a punitive termination attracting the Uttar Pradesh Government Servant (Discipline and Appeal) Rules, 1999. It held that a show-cause notice and compliance with the broad principles of natural justice...

No Vested Right To Claim Promotion Under Repealed Rules : Supreme Court

The Supreme Court on Thursday (September 17) reiterated that a promotional post arising under the applicable Rules need not necessarily be filled under those Rules, particularly where they have since been repealed. The Court held that such promotional posts can be filled up under the new Rules, which prescribe new methods of recruitment. “The employee does not acquire any vested right...

'Equal Pay For Equal Work' Doctrine Cannot Be Mechanically Applied, Experience Can Justify Pay Difference: Supreme Court

The Supreme Court has recently held that the doctrine of 'equal pay for equal work' cannot be mechanically applied merely on the ground that two categories of employees perform functionally similar duties, and that a difference in experience between directly recruited and promoted employees can constitute a valid basis for a difference in pay scales. A bench of Justice Dipankar Datta and...