- (1.) Challenge in these appeals is to the judgment dated 23 rd May, 2002, rendered by a Division Bench of the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir at Jammu in S.W.P No. 1470 of 1994. By the impugned judgment, while declaring Circular No.40 of 1985, dated 29 th July, 1985, which accorded monetary incentives to in-service employees of the Food Corporation of India (for short "the FCI") for acquiring higher qualifications, as discriminatory, the High Court has directed 1that if any benefit under the said Circular has been given to any employee, it shall be withdrawn.
(2.) Since both the appeals, one by the FCI and the other by the Bhartiya Khadya Nigam Karamchari Sangh (for short "the Karamchari Sangh"), arise out of the same judgment, the same are being disposed of by this common judgment. We may however, note that the FCI is aggrieved by the impugned judgment as a whole, whereas the Karamchari Sangh impugns the direction relating to the denial of the incentives to other employees, possessing same qualifications.
(3.) The material facts, giving rise to the appeal are as follows:- The FCI was set up with the objective of safeguarding the interest of the farmers, distribution of food grains throughout the country and to maintain a satisfactory level of food grain stocks to ensure national food security. The Food Corporation of India Act, 1964, became effective w.e.f. 17 th December 1964. Section 45 of the said Act empowers the FCI to make regulations for regulating the appointment, conditions of service and scales of pay of its officers and employees. Resultantly, the Food Corporation of India (Staff) Regulations, 1971, were made and came into effect from the year 1971.;