S. N. Pathak, J. - (1.) Heard learned counsel for the parties.
(2.) Initially petitioner had approached this Court with a prayer to treat services of Senior Personal Assistant in the office of Divisional Commissioner, South Chhotanagpur Commissionary, Ranchi at par with Senior P.A. (Private Secretary) in consonance with the Jharkhand Secretariat Services Rules, 2010. Further prayer has been made to redesignate post of Sr. Personal Assistant as Private Secretary on the ground that posts of Sr. Personal Assistant have already been redesignated as Private Secretary in the Revenue and Land Reforms Department of the State of Jharkhand and all consequential benefits be given to the petitioner as attached with the post of Private Secretary. Further prayer has been made for a direction to pay all benefits at par with Sr. P.A. (now redesignated as Private Secretary) of the Secretariat Services and to fix pay at par with Sr.P.A. (Private Secretary) posted in the Secretariat Cadre. Further prayer has been made for a direction to refix his pay on the basis of Grade Pay of Rs.4,600/ and to give him upgradation in the pay scale on the basis of Modified Assured Career Progression Scheme and to pay difference of salary with interest. I.A. No. 5464 of 2016 preferred by the petitioner had been allowed vide order dated 28.10.2016 and petitioner was allowed to incorporate further prayer for quashing the order dated 11.10.2006, issued under the signature of Joint Secretary, Personnel, Administrative Reforms and Rajbhasha Department, Government of Jharkhand whereby it has been decided that petitioner is not a member of Joint Cadre of Private Secretary which is being claimed on the basis of his initial appointment in the office of Divisional Commissioner.
(3.) Case of the petitioner in narrow campass is that pursuant to an open advertisement from Employment Exchange, petitioner applied for the post of Personal Assistant in the pay scale of Rs.785 1,210 which is also scale of Personal Assistants posted in Secretariat of the State Government. Petitioner belonged to Scheduled Tribes category. After being found successful, he was appointed and thereafter joined the service on 07.03.1989. Thereafter, pursuant to order dated 18.10.1996, service of the petitioner was confirmed in the said pay scale with effect from 07.03.1992. He was also given 1st ACP on 07.03.2001 and his pay scale was enhanced from Rs.5,500 9,000 to Rs. 6,500 10,500 (revised). Petitioner was thereafter promoted in the same pay scale to the post of Sr. Personal Assistant vide order dated 03.05.2008. After the recommendation of 6th Pay Revision Committee, pay scale of the petitioner has been fixed in the Pay Scale of Rs.9,300 34,800 with Grade Pay of Rs.4,200 while his pay ought to have been fixed in the Grade Pay of Rs.4,600. Further, petitioner's pay scale has been fixed by giving him first upgradation in pay scale under the Assured Caree Progression Scheme while it should have been fixed on the Grade Pay of Rs.4,600/ and, thereafter, his pay scale ought to have been fixed on the basis of promotion to the higher post of Sr. P.A. (Private Secretary) in the Grade Pay of Rs.4,800/, which is being paid to the coemployees posted in the same cadre in different Secretariat of the State. Grievance of the petitioner is that he has been denied equal treatment at par with other Sr.P.A. (Private Secretary) posted in different Secretariats of State on the basis of Circular issued on 26.02.1991, as contained in Memo No. 46 and in the said Circular, at para4, the State Government has taken decision to notify the offices of the Divisional Commissioner as attached offices of the concerned Secretariat i.e. under the Secretariat of Revenue and Land Reforms Department, accordingly office of the Divisional Commissioner was declared as part and parcel of the Revenue and Land Reforms Department. In pursuance of the Circular dated 26.02.1991, petitioner has been given equal treatment at par with the coemployees of the Revenue & Land Reforms Department without creating any pay anomaly, due to the reason that the offices of the Divisional Commissioner have been treated as the attached offices of the Revenue and Land Reforms Department of State of Jharkhand. However, the moment the 6th Pay Revision Committee's recommendation came into effect, a different treatment has been given to the petitioner by fixing lower pay scale by giving him the Grade pay of Rs.4,200 instead of Gread Pay of Rs.4,600, the Grade Pay which is being paid to the coemployees posted in the Revenue & Land Reforms Department of the State and as such the respondents State have violated its own Circular dated 26.02.1991. It is further case of the petitioner that apart from the office of the Divisional Commissioner, South Chhotanagpur, there are other Commissionaries also and their employees are being given equal treatment, treating them at par with the employees of the Revenue & Land Reforms Department, appointed from the source, meaning thereby they have already been given benefits of Circular dated 26.02.1991. Even the other employees holding different posts apart from the post of Sr. Personal Assistant in the office of respondent no. 5 are also being given similar treatment at par with the employees, posted in the Revenue and Land Reforms Department of the State but only the post of Sr. Personal Assistant is being discriminated, without any rhyme and reason. It is further averred that the State of Jharkhand has come up with Jharkhand Secretariat Services Rules, 2010 in which it has been provided that the office of the Divisional Commissioner, Ranchi will be a Department under the Revenue & Land Reforms of the State and thus the moment Rules have been framed and office of the respondent no. 5 has been declared an office under respondent no. 3, there cannot be discrimination with respect to fixation of pay scale and in view of said Rules, the petitioner is entitled to get equal treatment at par with the employees posted in the office of the respondent no. 3. It is further averred that recently in the office of respondent no. 3 the post of Sr. Personal Assistant has been redesignated as Private Secretary but in the same pay scale of the Sr. Personal Assistant, posted in the office of the respondent no. 5. It is contended that since in pursuance of Rule 2010 the office of respondent no. 5 has been declared an office under respondent no. 3 and since the post of Sr. Personal Assistant has been redesignated as Private Secretary, as such, the post of Sr. Personal Assistant in the office of respondent no. 5 is also to be redesignated as Private Secretary but that has not been done which is arbitrary and unreasonable exercise of the respondent state and thus they are acting contrary to their own statutory Rules, framed in the year 2010. It is further case of the petitioner that at present he is getting pay scale of Rs.9,300 34,000 with pay grade of Rs.4,200 while he is entitled for grade pay of Rs.4,600/ and accordingly entitled to be paid upgradation of pay scale in grade pay of Rs.5,400/. The office of the Commissioner has been declared to be attached office of Secretariat by Circular dated 27.02.1991 and hence, petitioner is entitled to be paid pay scale of Senior Personal Assistant at par with the pay scale of regular employees of same rank in Secretariat Services. Petitioner is further aggrieved by the order dated 11.10.2006 whereby claim of the petitioner has been rejected by Joint Secretary, Personnel Administrative Reforms and Rajbhasha Department, Government of Jharkhand, without describing any underline reasoning as to why petitioner's claim has been declined. Petitioner has further brought on record the memo no. 28, dated 02.01.2007, wherein the post of Senior Personal Assistant has been redesignated to the post of Private Secretary with effect from 01.01.1996. Since act of respondents authorities is contrary to the provisions of law, is arbitrary and unreasonable, petitioner has preferred instant writ petition for redressal of his grievance.;