PETITIONER:
STATE OF PUNJAB & ORS
Vs.
RESPONDENT:
HARNAM SINGH & ORS.
DATE OF JUDGMENT: 17/01/1997
BENCH:
K. RAMASWAMY, G. SAGHIR AHMAD
ACT
HEADNOTE
JUDGMENT
ORDER
Leave Granted.
This appeal by special leave arises from the judgement of the Punjab & Haryana High Court, made on September 13,1995 in Write Petition No.5590/95.
The admitted position is that the respondents joined the service as drawing teachers in the District Boards and zilla Parishads in Punjab during the year 1957-58. The schools were taken over by Government of Punjab from District Boards and Zilla Paishads, At the time of take over, two of the conditions enumerated in the deed of take over were:
3. The Government shall not be
bound to take in Government service
the members of the staff of the
school and shall have full
discretion in taking over such of
them in Government service as may
be considered suitable by
it,(Govt.).
4. The members of staff who are
taking in Government service by the
Government under the preceding
clause shall be treated as fresh
entrants in Government service and
no credit whatsoever of their
previous service in the aforesaid
school shall be allowed to them and
their seniority vice-versa. The old
Government servant shall be
terminated accordingly."
The question, therefore, is: whether the view of the High Court that the previous service rendered by the respondents/erstwhile teachers in District Boards and Zilla Parishads would be counted for the purpose of seniority and other benefits, is correct in law? In view of the aforesaid clauses, it would be abundantly clear that the Government has been given discretion to take any of the existing members into the service and if so taken, they shall be treated as fresh entrants into the Government service vis-avis the exiting Government employees. It would be reasonable to conclude that the Government have taken over the schools run by the Boards and Zilla parishad as Government schools with the aforesaid condition to safeguard the service condition of the exiting employees of the Government vis-avis the new entrants.
Under those circumstances, the staff working in the former Zilla Parishad or Board taken over by the Government would be treated as fresh entrants into the Government service from the date of taking over. therefore, the previous service rendered by them would also be clear that unless there was a condition at the time of take over to treat the previous services of the employees as part of service under the Government service, it would not be counted. In other words, it will be subject to the terms of take over.
The controversy is no longer res integra, In similar circumstances, this court in state of Punjab vs. Dev Dutt Kaushal [1995 Supp SCC 746 ] in paragraph 8 considered the question squarely and held that:
"...the respondent was not entitled
to any pension according to the
service conditions obtaining in the
private college . Had the college
not been taken over by the
Government and had the retired in
the normal course, he would not
have been entitled only to
contributory provident fund . It is
only under government service that
pension is provided for. But such
pension is available only if any
employee puts in ten years of
service under the Goverment. Now
the gift deed does not say that for
the purpose of pension. The service
rendered in the college while it
was under the private management
shall also be counted. On the
contrary, it says that Government
shall not accept any responsible
and shall not accept any liability
for the period prior to the taking
over of the college and that all
such liabilities shall be cleared
by the managing committee of the
college --- which means that on the
date of taking over the college,
the respondent was entitled to be
paid the contributory provident
fund by the then management of the
college."
In view of the above legal position, the parties are governed by the conditions specified in the deed take over. As mentioned earlier, the conditions specified are that they are to be treated as fresh entrants. In other words, the previous service has been wiped out and, therefore, they are not entitled to take into account the previous service for any of the benefits including pension.
The appeal is accordingly alowed. as a consequence, the write petition stands dismissed. No costs.