‘Similarly situated’: CAT orders notional benefit to NTs

Srinagar, Aug 10: Underscoring that all identically situated persons must be treated similarly, the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) in Srinagar has directed the government to grant notional benefit in service to six Naib Tehsildars (NTs) as has been given by it to similarly situated appointees.

“If a particular set of employees is given relief by the Court, all other identically situated persons need to be treated alike and granted the same benefits. Not doing so, will amount to discrimination and violation of the Article 14 of Constitution of India,” a bench comprising M S Latif (Member Judicial) and Prasant Kumar (Member Administrative) said in its order.

While deciding a related plea by the aggrieved NTs for a notional service benefit as has been given to others of the same selection process, the tribunal held that “where the service jurisprudence is involved, the Courts have time to time postulated that all similarly situated persons must be treated similarly”.

This, the tribunal noted while relying on the judgment of the apex Court titled State of Uttar Pradesh and others v/s Arvind Kumar Srivastava and others passed in Civil Appeal No.9849/2014 arising out of SLP No.18639 of 2012 decided on October 17, 2014.

In its judgment passed in response to aggrieved NTs plea, the court directed Secretary to Government Revenue Department to grant the notional service benefits to the petitioners in keeping with the law laid down by the Supreme Court in the case titled Sanjay Dhar vs J&K Public Service Commission and the coordinate bench of the tribunal in the case titled Stanzin Rigdol and others vs UT of J&K and others.

The authorities have been directed to implement the judgement and pass orders within six weeks.

The Court also quashed and set aside the Revenue Department’s Order No.129-JK(Rev) of 2024 dated 13.11.2024 whereby the claim of the NTs for notional effect had been rejected. The order, it said, was passed apparently without due application of mind and was bereft of reason as was required in terms of judgment dated 22.05.2024 in TA No.1573 of 2021.

The Court issued these directions after hearing the aggrieved NTs-- Hamidullah Dar and others through their counsel, Faizan Majid Bhat and the government through its counsel.

The counsel argued that the stand of the respondents was discriminatory and violative of Article 14 of Constitution as notional benefit had already been granted to the other similarly situated appointees but denied to the petitioners arbitrarily.

In support of his contention, the counsel referred to the law laid down by the Supreme Court in the celebrated judgment in the case titled Sanjay Dhar vs J&K Public Service Commission (2000) 8 SCC 182. “The respondents (Revenue Department authorities) are under the command of law as laid down in the case supra and any law laid down by the Hon’ble Apex Court is to be taken as a law passed by the legislature in the light of Article 14 of the Constitution of India,” he said.

The Counsel submitted that the law is settled on the point that” if a candidate is wrongly excluded on account of arbitrary action, then he, undoubtedly, has to be given notional benefits”.

While granting the notional benefit to four NTs who were appointed by virtue of the judgment passed by court on 18.08.2018 after they were extended the benefit of Inam ul Haque Haq Hajjam Judgement, the government in its order dated 08.9.2023 said that “the appointment shall take effect notionally from 20.11. 2009 instead of immediate effect and pursuant their appointment shall be governed by old pension scheme instead of new pension scheme and further they shall be provided all the service benefits as have been granted to the petitioners of Inamul Haq Hajjam’s case”.

The counsel said the judgement in Inamul Haq Hajjam’s case came on May 19, 2015 and the related petitioners were appointed in terms of the government order dated June 30, 2016 with a notional effect from November 20, 2009.

In terms of the judgment dated 18.8.2018, Rajender Kumar & others were appointed vide government order issued on 16-03-2023 with immediate effect. Thereafter, notional benefit was granted to the four appointees on September 8, 2023, nearly six months after their appointment.

However, in case of petitioners of Hamidullah Dar & others, the judgment came on 31-12-2014 but notional effect of service has still not been extended to them, despite court directions, he said.

The counsel argued that in the entire selection process all the appointees including the ones appointed on the basis of different judgments have been given the service benefits from November 20, 2009, but the six aggrieved NTs have not been granted the same for the reasons known to the respondents.

In counter argument, DAG for the government had claimed that the case of the petitioners was distinguishable from the case of Inam ul Haq Hajam and others. As such, he said, they could not claim the benefit as a matter of right of equality.