- (1.) IN this writ application a common order has been raised and as such the grievances are heard and disposed of by this common order.
(2.) THE petitioners have prayed for quashing the order dated 11.12.2007 (Annexure -1) whereby the Superintendent of Police (Wireless) has ordered for recovery of amount paid allegedly in excess, to the petitioners under the Reducible Pay Protection (R.P.P.). It is contended by the learned counsel for the petitioners that the amount under the aforesaid scheme is paid to the petitioners under the order of the competent authority of the department only to afford pay protection to the petitioners since the persons junior to them are getting higher pay scales. It is further submitted that this practice of payment under the R.P.P. scheme has been continuing since the year 1996. However, without affording any opportunity to be heard and without issuing any show cause notice to the petitioners, the payment under the R.P.P. scheme has been abruptly stopped by the impugned order of the Superintendent of Police (Wireless). Learned counsel explains further that there is no allegation against the petitioners that there was any misrepresentation on their part which had influenced the payment of the amount under the R.P.P. scheme of the Government. The impugned order whereby the alleged excess payment is sought to be recovered from the salary of the petitioners, according to the learned counsel, is totally illegal and against the principles of natural justice.
(3.) LEARNED counsel for the petitioners submits that identical issue was earlier decided by a Bench of this court in W.P.(S) No. 6254 of 2007 and analogous cases and also in an earlier W.P.(S) No. 5464 of 2006 and the order whereby recovery of amount at higher scale paid to the employees, without any misrepresentation on their part, has been set aside. The petitioners, therefore, are entitled to the same benefit.;