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PETITIONER: STATE OF PUNJAB AND OTHERS

       Vs.

RESPONDENT: OM PARKASH KAUSHAL AND OTHERS

DATE OF JUDGMENT:       08/07/1996

BENCH: KULDIP SINGH (J) BENCH: KULDIP SINGH (J) HANSARIA B.L. (J)

CITATION:  1996 SCALE  (5)196

ACT:

HEADNOTE:

JUDGMENT:                             WITH              CIVIL APPEAL NO. 9106-9115 OF 1996           (Arising out of SLP(C) No.20546 - 20555) State of Punjab and others V. Gulshan Lal Aul and others                       J U D G M E N T KULDIP SINGH,J      Delay condoned.      Special leave granted in all tht petitions.      The respondents,  in the  appeals herein,  are teachers employed in  various privately  managed aided schools in the State of  Punjab.  Prior  to  1967  there  was  considerable disparity in thew emoluments of the teachers employed in the private  schools.  Government  of  India  appointed  Kothari Commission to  examine the conditions of service of teachers with the  object of  improving the  standard of education in the country.  Among  other  things  the  Kothari  Commission recommended that  the  scales  of  pay  of  school  teachers belonging to  the same  category and working under different Managements such  as government,  Local  bodies  or  Private Organizations should  be the  same. Almost  all the  States, including the  State of  Punjab, decided  to  implement  the recommendations of  the Kothari  Commission.  The  State  of Punjab revised  the  pay  scales  of  the  teachers  of  the privately managed aided schools with effect from December 1, 1967 and  brought the  same at  par with the teachers of the same status in the Government service. This Court in Haryana State Adhyapak  Sangh and  Ors. etc.  v. State  of Haryana & Ors., 1988 Supp (1) SCR 682 and Haryana State Adhyapak Sangh and Others  v. State  of Haryana.  1990 Supp SCC 306, on the peculiar facts  pertaining to those cases, directed that the Haryana teachers  employed in the private aided schools were entitled to  the same  pay scales  and dearness allowance as were being paid to the teachers in Government schools.      As mentioned  above, the  State of  Punjab had  granted

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uniform pay  scales to  the  respondents  with  effect  from December 1,  1967. The  pay scales  were similar  to the pay scales  drawn   by  the   Government  teachers.  The  Punjab Legislature enacted  The Punjab Privately Managed Recognised Schools employees  (Security of Service) Act, 1979 (the Act) which came  into force  with effect  from January  23, 1981. Section 7 of the Act is as under :      "7,    Salaries    of    employees-      Notwithstanding anything  contained      in section  3, the scale of pay and      dearness allowance of the employees      shall not be less than those of the      employees of  the State  Government      holding corresponding  posts in the      schools   run    by    the    State      Government:           Provided that where the scales      of pay  and dearness  allowance  of      the employees  are less  than those      of  the   employees  of  the  State      Government  holding   corresponding      posts in  the schools  run  by  the      State  Government,   the   Director      shall direct the concerned managing      Committee to  bring the same at par      with those of such employees of the      State Government."      It is not disputed that the pay scales and the dearness allowance which  are being  paid to the private teachers are not less  than what is being paid to the Government teachers holding corresponding posts. A peculiar and wholly untenable claim has been made by the respondents in these proceedings. The  claim  of  the  respondents  is  based  on  the  Punjab Government instructions  - applicable to Government teachers only which  were issued  four decades  back when none of the respondents Were  in service.  The Punjab  Government issued instructions dated  July 23, 1957 revising the pay scales of various categories  of Government servants, with effect from May 1,  1957. The  Government teachers  were placed  in  two broad categories  based on their educational qualifications. Different  revised  payscales  were  provided  in  the  said instructions  for   the  teachers  on  the  basis  of  their qualifications.  The   Punjab  Government   issued   further instructions dated  September 1,  1960,  thereunder  it  was provided that  the masters (a category of teachers) -working in Government  schools -  who acquire  the qualification  of M.A./M.Sc./M.D. (IIIrd  Division), would  be entitled to one increment and  those who acquire the said qualification with first and  second  division,  would  be  entitled  to  three increments. There  is  a  chequered  history  of  litigation regarding the  1957/1960 instruction but it is not necessary to go into the same. Suffice it to say that the instructions were not  implemented by  the  State  Government  and  as  a consequence  there  was  prolonged  litigation  between  the teachers and  the State Government which was finally settled by this Court in favour of the government teachers. Later on by the  order dated  February 19, 1979 the Punjab Government withdrew the  1957/1960 instructions. The 1979 instructions, however, provided  that all  those Government  teachers  who became  eligible   for  the  benefits  under  the  1957/1960 instructions prior  to the  1979 order  would be entitled to the same.      The respondents filed several petitions before the High Court  claiming   the  benefit  of  the  1960  instructions. According to  the respondents,  there being parity regarding

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pay scales-  and  dearness  allowance  between  the  private teachers and the government teachers since December 1, 1967, all of them, having acquired the higher qualifications prior to 1979  in terms of the 1960 instructions, were entitled to the advance  increments. The High Court relying upon the two Adhyapak Sangh  cases (supra)  allowed the  writ  petitions. These appeals,  by the  State of  Punjab,  are  against  the judgment of the Division Bench of the High Court dated March 24, 1994.      As mentioned  above, the Act came into force on January 23, 1981. Section 7 of the Act granted parity to the private teachers in  the  matter  of  scales  of  pay  and  dearness allowance with  the Government  teachers. Prior  to that the Punjab  Government  glad  grafted  unified  pay  scales  and dearness allowance  to the  private teachers at par with the Government  teachers  by  the  executive  instructions  with effect from  December 1,  1967. The  respondents were  given parity under  the executive  instructions only in respect of pay scales  and dearness  allowance. The other conditions of service  relating   to  the  Government  teachers  were  not extended to  the respondents. The incentives provided in the 1960 instructions  in the shape of advance increments to the Government   teachers   who   improved   their   educational qualifications could  not be  automatically extended  to the respondents. This  Court, in  the two  Adhyapak Sangh  cases from the State of Haryana, allowed the benefit of pay scales and dearness  allowance to the private teachers and declined to go  into other  benefits like  house rent allowance, city compensatory allowance, LTC, bonus etc.      We are, therefore, of the view that the High Court fell into patent  error in directing the State or Punjab to grant the benefits under the 1960 instructions to the respondents. We allow the appeals, set aside the impugned judgment of the High Court  and dismiss  the writ  petitions  filed  by  the respondents before the High Court. No costs.