- (1.) AN over ambitious spinning master, now retired from the services of 1st respondent -Corporation is before this Court in a petition filed under Art. 226/227 of the Constitution of India, inter alia seeking the following reliefs : '(a) issue a writ of mandamus or any other appropriate writ order of direction, quashing the endorsement bearing reference No. NTC/PIR/7(S)/88/3501 dated December 9, 1988 (Annexure -E) as the same is arbitrary, capricious and cannot be sustained. (b) issue a writ of mandamus or any other appropriate writ order or direction directing the respondents to pay the petitioner the amounts in lieu of 'earned leave', leave travel concession, medical reimbursement and the benefit of normal annual increments with the benefits of revised pay and all allowances with a further direction to the respondents to pay interest on this sum at the rate of 18 per cent per annum from the date on which the said amount became payable till the date of payment'.
(2.) BRIEFLY the background facts are, petitioner had been appointed as Additional Spinning Master -cum -Maintenance in charge in M.S.K. Mills Ltd., Gulbarga. Petitioner became an employee of the 1st respondent by reason of nationalisation of that mill w.e.f. April 1, 1974. Petitioner's services stood transferred to Mysore Spinning and Manufacturing Mills in Bangalore, another nationalised unit and appointed as Spinning Master. The services of the petitioner came to be terminated by respondents by exercising their powers conferred under Clause 3 of the appointment order/letter dated July 6, 1968 by giving one month's pay in lieu of notice. The validity or otherwise of that order had been questioned by the petitioner in a writ petition filed before this Court in No. 20105 of 1983. This Court by its order dated November 25, 1987 was pleased to allow the writ petition and was further pleased to pass the following order - '(i) Writ petition succeeds; (ii) Impugned order, Annexure -C dated November 10, 1983 passed by the second respondent, is hereby quashed. (iii) Petitioner is entitled to all consequential benefits flowing from such declaration and; (iv) Rule made absolute'. After disposal of the writ petition by this Court, petitioner represented to the management of the respondent -Corporation to implement the order passed by this Court on November 25, 1987. The General Manager of the Mills by his letter dated May 12, 1988, informed the petitioner that the total amount payable to the petitioner, less deductions comes to a sum of Rs. 1,42,104.13 ps. which includes gratuity and in terms of that letter, petitioner was paid that amount. In that letter, petitioner was also informed that he is not entitled to other benefits such as earned leave salary, L.T.C., Medical reimbursement and other benefits. It is asserted in the petition that the petitioner after making a few more representations, finally got issued a legal notice to the respondent -Corporation dated January 21, 1988. In that notice, the petitioner demanded for the following benefits : '(a) 30 days earned leave from November 1983, to July 31, 1987. (b) Sick leave and casual leave from November 1983 to July 31, 1987. (c) Leave Travel concession from 1983 to 1987 to and to and fro with family (1st Class) A.C. as per his entitlement to go to his native place. (d) Medical reimbursement at the rate of one month's basic pay from November 1983 to July 31, 1987. (e) Benefit of normal annual increments from November 1983 to July 31, 1987.'
(3.) SINCE the petitioner by then had retired he sought for the benefit of cash payment in lieu of the aforesaid benefit, which was approximately quantified at Rs. 70,000/ -. This notice of the petitioner came to be replied by Senior Manager, Personnel and Industrial Relation of the respodent -Corporation informing the petitioner that the benefit claimed cannot be granted in view of the Rules of the Company. Aggrieved by this rejection order dated December 9, 1988, rejecting the claim of the petitioner for certain monetary benefits, petitioner is before this Court for the reliefs as indicated by me earlier.;