In a significant ruling, the Uttarakhand High Court has provided major relief to state government employees by quashing orders that directed the recovery of excess salary payments made to them. The judgment impacts staff across various departments who were facing financial deductions.
Court Halts Recovery Citing Natural Justice
The decision was delivered by a single bench of Justice Manoj Kumar Tiwari during the hearing of a batch of petitions, including the prominent Ram Ujagar vs State of Uttarakhand case. These petitions challenged the state's move to recover funds linked to alleged errors in pay fixation and the granting of financial benefits.
The recovery process was initiated following an audit objection. The competent authority, invoking a government order dated May 27, 2019, had concluded that certain employees had received additional pay or increments incorrectly due to mistakes in calculating their revised pay scales.
Employees' Challenge and Government's Defense
The petitioners, led by Ram Ujagar, argued vehemently against the recovery. Their counsel contended that the salary payments were originally made in accordance with authorized rules and regulations. A core argument was that issuing unilateral recovery orders after several years was a clear violation of the principles of natural justice. They described the action as excessively harsh, arbitrary, and unfair to employees who had budgeted their lives based on their long-received salaries.
Representing the state, the government advocate defended the recovery action. He asserted that the competent authority was well within its rights to initiate the process after the audit objection was raised. The advocate also pointed out that employees were bound by an undertaking they signed while opting for the revised pay scale, which potentially allowed for future corrections. To bolster the state's position, the government counsel referenced a relevant Supreme Court judgment.
Court's Rationale and Final Ruling
After a thorough hearing of both sides, Justice Tiwari noted a crucial precedent. The bench observed that a coordinate bench of the same High Court had already quashed both the audit report and the contentious government order of May 27, 2019 in a similar matter. Therefore, the current petition deserved to be disposed of on identical grounds.
Consequently, the court allowed the employees' petitions and quashed the recovery orders against them. However, the judgment included an important clarification. The ruling does not prevent the competent authority from re-fixing the pay of the concerned employees in the future, provided it is done strictly in accordance with the applicable rules and policies.
This verdict brings an end to a period of uncertainty and financial anxiety for numerous state government employees in Uttarakhand, safeguarding them from sudden and substantial recoveries from their salaries.
