DR. K. M. SHARMA & ORS. versus THE STATE OF CHHATTISGARH & ORS.

Citation: [2022] 4 S.C.R. 718 · Decided: 20-05-2022 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: M.R. SHAH · Disposal: Dismissed
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Judgment (excerpt)

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SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[2022] 4 S.C.R.
DR. K. M. SHARMA & ORS.
v.
THE STATE OF CHHATTISGARH & ORS.
(Civil Appeal No. 3030 of 2022)
MAY 20, 2022
[M. R. SHAH AND B. V. NAGARATHNA, JJ.]
Service Law: Pay scale – Entitlement to – Principle of equal
pay for equal work – Appellants appointed as Shikha Karmis under
the 1998 Rules, claiming parity in pay scales with that of the
employees of the Municipality/Municipal teachers appointed under
the 1968 Rules – Held: Shiksha Karmis and Municipal Teachers
are appointed under different rules and there are different methods
of selection and recruitment, thus, parity in pay scale cannot be
claimed – Shiksha Karmis, governed by the 1998  Rules entitled to
pay-scales under the 1998 Rules only – Chhattisgarh Municipalities
Shiksha Karmis (Recruitment and Conditions of Service) Rules,
1998 – Municipal Employees (Recruitment and Conditions of
Service) Rules, 1968.
Dismissing the appeal, the Court
HELD: On a fair reading of Rule 7 of the Chhattisgarh
Municipalities Shiksha Karmis (Recruitment and Conditions of
Service) Rules, 1998, it is clear that on completion of the probation
period, the Shiksha Karmis shall be confirmed as Shiksha Karmis
only and they shall be put in the regular pay-scale of the
Municipality as Shiksha Karmis and not as the Municipal teachers.
Municipal teachers are appointed under the Municipal
Employees (Recruitment and Conditions of Service) Rules, 1968.
As per Rule 4 of the 1998 Rules, Shiksha Karmis shall have to
be paid the scales of pay as given in the Schedule I to the said
Rules. The respective Shiksha Karmis are paid the pay-scales
as per Schedule I of Rule 4. Therefore, when the Municipal
teachers and the Shiksha Karmis are appointed under different
Rules and there are different methods of selection and
recruitment, a Shiksha Karmi cannot claim parity in pay-scale
with that of Municipal teachers on the principle of equal pay for
equal work. Thus, Shiksha Karmis, who are governed by the
[2022] 4 S.C.R. 718
718
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Shiksha Karmis Rules, 1998 under which they were appointed,
are entitled to pay-scales under the Shiksha Karmis Rules, 1998
only, which are being paid to them. There is no error committed
either by the Single Judge or by the Division Bench of the High
Court in refusing to grant the pay-scales of Municipal teachers
to the appellants. [Paras 7 and 8][723-G-H; 724-A-C]
State of Haryana and Ors. v. Charanjit Singh and Ors.
(2006) 9 SCC 321 : [2005] 4 Suppl. SCR 57 – referred
to.
Case Law Reference
[2005] 4 Suppl. SCR 57
referred to
Para 4.5
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION: Civil Appeal No. 3030
of 2022.
From the Judgment and Order dated 01.12.2015 of the High Court
of Chhattisgarh at Bilaspur in Writ Appeal No. 538 of 2015.
Kaustubh Shukla, Ms. Nancy Shamith, V. Purushodhaman Reddy,
Ms. Isra Vatsa, Abhay Singh, Ms. Ankita Agarwal, Lakshmeesh Kamath,
Ms. Samriti Ahuja, Advs. for the Appellants.
Sumeer Sodhi, Arjun Nanda, Ms. Tanya Verma, Vikrant Singh
Bais, Rakesh Shruti, Yogesh Tiwari, Advs. for the Respondents.
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by
M. R. SHAH, J.
1. Feeling aggrieved and dissatisfied with the impugned judgment
and order passed by the High Court of Chhattisgarh at Bilaspur in Writ
Appeal No. 538 of 2015 by which the High Court has dismissed the said
appeal and has not interfered with the judgment and order passed by the
learned Single Judge dismissing the writ petition in which the appellants
– original writ petitioners prayed for grant of equal pay-scale as admissible
to teachers appointed in the Municipal services under the Municipal
Employees (Recruitment and Conditions of Service) Rules, 1968
(hereinafter referred to as “Rules, 1968”), the original writ petitioners –
Shiksha Karmis have preferred the present appeal.
2. At the outset, it is required to be noted that respective petitioners
were appointed as Shikha Karmis under the Chhattisgarh Municipalities
DR. K. M. SHARMA & ORS. v. THE STATE OF
CHHATTISGARH & ORS.
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SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[2022] 4 S.C.R.
Shiksha Karmis (Recruitment and Conditions of Service) Rules, 1998
(hereinafter referred to the “Shiksha Karmis Rules, 1998”). The Shiksha
Karmis Rules, 1998 were subsequently substituted by the Chhattisgarh
Shiksha (Nagriya Nikay) Samvarg (Bharti Tatha Sewa Ki Sharte) Niyam,
2013. That the original writ petitioners submitted representations praying
for grant of equal pay-scale as admissible to teachers appointed in
Municipal s
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