PETITIONER: K.C. SHARMA & ORS. Vs. RESPONDENT: UNION OF INDIA & ORS. DATE OF JUDGMENT: 25/07/1997 BENCH: M.M. PUNCHHI, S.C. AGRAWAL, A.S. ANAND, S.P. BHARUCHA ACT: HEADNOTE: JUDGMENT:
THE 25TH DAY OF JULY, 1997
Present:
Hon’ble the Chief Justice
Hon’ble Mr. Justice M.M.Punchhi
Hon’ble Mr. Justice S.C.Agarwal
Hon’ble Dr.Justice A.S.Anand
Hon’ble Mr.Justice S.P.Bharucha
J.M. Khanna, Adv. for the appellants.
J U D G M E N T
The following Judgment of the Court was delivered;
S.C. AGARWAL, J. :-
Delay in filing of the Special Leave Petition is
condoned.
Special Leave granted.
This appeal is directed against the judgment of the
Principal Bench of the Central Administrative Tribunal
(hereinafter referred to as ‘the Tribunal’) dated July 25,
1994 in O.A. No. 774 of 1994. The appellants were employed
as guards in the Northern Railway and they retired as guards
during the period between 1980 and 1988. They felt
aggrieved by the notifications dated December 5, 1988
whereby Rule 2544 of the Indian Railways Establishment Code
was amended and for the purpose of calculation of average
emoluments the maximum limit in respect of Running
Allowances was reduced from 75% to 45% in respect of period
from January 1, 1973 to March 31, 1979 and to 55% for the
period from April 1, 1979 onwards.
The validity of the retrospective amendments introduced
by the impugned notifications dated December 5, 1988 had
been considered by the Full Bench of the Tribunal in its
judgment dated December 16, 1993 in O.A. No. 395-403 of 1993
and connected matters and the said notifications in so far
as they gave retrospective effect to the amendments were
held to be invalid as being violative a Articles 14 and 16
of the Constitution. Since the appellants were adversely
affected by the impugned amendments, they sought the benefit
of the Full Bench of the Tribunal by filing representations
before the Railway Administration. Since they failed to
obtain redress, they filed the application (O.A. NO. 774 of
1994) seeking relief before the Tribunal in April 1994. The
said application of the appellants was dismissed by the
Tribunal by the impugned judgment on the view that the
application was barred by limitation. The Tribunal refused
to condone the delay in the filing of the said applications.
The correctness of the decision of the Full Bench of
the Tribunal has been affirmed by this Court in Chairman,
Railway Board & Ors. V. C.R. Rangadhamaiah & Ors., Civil
Appeals Nos. 4174-4182 of 1995 and connected matters decided
today.
Having regarding to the facts and circumstances of the
case, we are of the view that this was a fit case in which
the Tribunal should have condoned the delay in the filing of
the application and the appellants should have been given
relief in the same terms as was granted by the Full Bench of
the Tribunal. The appeal is, therefore, allowed, the
impugned judgment of the Tribunal is set aside, the delay in
filing of O.A. No. 774 of 199 is condoned and the said
application is allowed. The appellants would be entitled to
the same relief in matter of pension as has been granted by
the Full Bench of the Tribunal in its judgment dated
December 16, 1993 in O.A. Nos. 395-403 of 1993 and connected
matters. No order as to costs.