DHARAM CHAND AND ORS. versus HARYANA AGRICULTURAL UNIVERSITY AND ORS

Citation: [2003] SUPP. 5 S.C.R. 480 · Decided: 12-11-2003 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: V.N. KHARE, S.B. SINHA · Disposal: Dismissed
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Judgment (excerpt)

A 
DHARAM CHAND AND ORS. 
v. 
HARYANA AGRICULTURAL UNIVERSITY AND ORS. 
NOVEMBER 12, 2003 
B 
[V.N. KHARE, CJ., AND S.B. SINHA, J.] 
Service Law: 
Parity in pay scale-Claim for-Haryana Agricultural University-
C Class Ill employees-Revision of pay scale at par with State Government 
employees-Persons employed prior to 6.6.1980 adversely affected as prior 
to revision they were getting higher pay scale-Anomaly removal Committee 
in order to protect their pay, recommending a different scale of pay to them-
Persons employed after 6.6.1980 claiming same pay scale on the principle 
D of 'equal pay for equal work'-Held, on facts, doctrine of equal pay for equal 
work not applicable-Authorities of the University merely accepted 
recommendations of Anomaly Removal Committee in terms whereof pay scale 
of employees appointed prior to 6. 6. 1980, which is personal in nature, was 
protected-These employees form a different class and entitled to different 
treatment-State is entitled to make a classification provided the same is 
E reasonable and based on intelligible dijferentia-Decision of University 
neither arbitrary nor discriminatory-Doctrine of equal pay for equal work. 
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION : Civil Appeal No. 53 83 of 1998. 
From the Judgment and Order dated 24.10.97 of the Punjab and Haryana 
F High Court in L.P.A. No. 192of1991. 
G 
H 
Raj Kumar Gupta, Sheo Kumar Gupta, Ms. Bhanu Pratap Gupta and A.N. 
Bardiyar for the Appellants. 
Mahabir Singh, Rakesh Dahiya and Nikhil Jain for the Respondents. 
The following Order of the Court was delivered : 
The appellants herein are the members of the ministerial staff working 
in the Haryana Agricultural University. It is not disputed that they came to 
be appointed after 6th June, I 980. 
480 
DHARAM CHANDv. HARYANAAGRICULTURAL UNIVERSITY 
48 J 
On or about 2nd April, 1980, the Board of Management of the University A 
authorised the Finance committee to revise the pay scale of all the employees 
of the University with effect from I st April, 1979, pursuant whereto and in 
furtherance whereof recommendations were made to grant revised scale of 
pay to the employees of the University. The University accepted the said 
recommendations and issued a Notification as regards the revisions of pay 
scale of all categories of University employees, including clerks on 6th June, B 
1980. The appellants admittedly herein were appointed on or about after 6th 
June, 1980 . 
. Having regard to the recommendations of the Finance Committee, the 
scale of pay of Class III employees of the University was made at par with C 
those of Class III employees of the State Government. The question which 
arose for consideration before the University was that in the event same scale 
of pay is made available in relation to the employees appointed both prior to 
and after 6th June, 1980, the pay scale of the Clerks, who were already in 
employment of th~ University, on that day, would go down. In that view of 
the matter, a representation was made by the said employees before the D 
University and the matter was referred to the Anomaly Removal Committee. 
Before the Anomaly Removal Committee, the contention of Class III employees 
of the University, who were appointed prior to 6th June, 1980, was that their 
scale of pay was earlier fixed at Rs.120-300 whereas those of the State 
Government was Rs. 110 and 225. Upon consideration of the matters in E 
various meetings, the Anomaly Removal Committee had recommended as 
under: 
"(i) (a) since the pre-revised scale of pay of clerical cadre in the 
University was Rs. 120-300 against Rs.110-225 under State Government, 
the persons employed in the clerical cadre of the University, prior to p 
the date of notification of the revised scales i.e., prior to 6.6.80 should 
be allowed the scale of Rs.420-700 as a personal measure, but 
recruitment to the clerical cadre on or after that date (6.6.80) should 
be made in the normal scale of Rs.400-600. Selection grade of Rs.480-
760 shall be applicable to 20% of all permanent posts of clerical cadre 
whether in the scale ofRs.400-660 or·in the personal scale of Rs. 420- G 
700." 
The recommendations of the Anomaly Removal Committee was accepted 
by the Board of Management of the University. The appellants herein 
emboldened by the said fact filed a writ petition before the High Court under H 
482 
SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2003] SUPP. 5 S.C.R. 
A Article 226 of the Constitution of India, praying for issuance in the na
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