UNION OF INDIA versus T.M. SOMARAJAN & OTHERS

Citation: [2009] 15 S.C.R. 305 · Decided: 21-10-2009 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: V.S. SIRPURKAR · Disposal: Dismissed
Open in Lexace · Ask the AI about this case
Judgment (excerpt)

(2009] 15 (ADDL.) S.C.R. 305 
, UNION OF INDIA 
A 
v. 
T.M. SOMARAJAN & OTHERS 
(Civil Appeal 'No. 9041 of 2003) 
OCTOBER 21, 2009 
B 
[V.S. SIRPURKAR AND DEEPAK VERMA, JJ.] 
Service law ~Pay fixation - Appointment of officer of 
State Police Service to /PS cadre - Reduction of pay in /PC 
cadre vis-a-vis higher pay in State Police Service - Also c 
juniors to the officer inducted into /PS cadre after the 
induction of the officer, getting more pay - Removal of 
anomaly sought - . Held: After entering into /PS cadre from 
State Cadre Service, pay of such officer should not be 
reduced - Order of tribunal as upheld by High Court that D 
applicant entitled to get his initial pay fixed in /PS Cadre on 
basis of the pay drawn by him in non-IPS cadre as confirmed 
Superintendent of Police without applying restrictive definition 
of expression higher scale, does not call for interference -
Indian Police Service (Pay) Rules, 1954, Schedule II section E 
I. 
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION : Civil Appeal No. 
~ t 
9041 of 2003. 
From th~ Judgment & Order dated 6.9.2002 of the High 
F 
Court of Kerala at Ernakulam in O.P. No. 22783 of 2002 (S). 
WITH 
SLP (C) Nos. 14700-14701 of 2004. 
G 
SLP (C) Nos. 8967 of 2007. 
Mohan Jain, ASG, Dinesh Thakur, Rohini Mukh~rjee, 
305 
H 
306 
SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2009] 15 (ADDL.) S.C.R. 
A Subhash Kaushik, S.N. Terdal (for Sushma Suri) for the 
Appellant. 
Nishe Rajen Shanker (for T.T.K. Deepak & Co.) C.N. 
Sreekumar, P.R. Nayak, G. Prakash, R. Sathish, V.K. 
8 Sidharthan for the Respondents. 
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by 
V.S. SIRPURKAR, J. 1. It it an admitted position that the 
respondent No. 1 who was a member of the state police service 
c was inducted into the Indian Police Service (IPS in short) w.e.f. 
9.12.1995. At that time, his basic pay in the state cadre was 
Rs. 4650 p.m. + special pay of Rs. 100. Very curiously, after 
his entry into the IPS., his pay came to be refixed at Rs. 4250 
+ special pay of Rs. 200 w.e.f. 1.12.19,96. 
2. ·Respondent No. 1 made a representation dated 
16.8. 1997 to ·the Accountant General (A&E), Kera la, 
Thiruvananthapuram for the purpose of removal of the anomaly 
consisting in the reduction of pay ·in the IPC cadre vis-a-vis 
higher pay in the State Police Service. Instead-of removing that 
anomaly, it was reiterated in a communication dated 2.9.1997 
received from the Accountant General (A&E), Kerala that the 
fixation of pay was made placing reliance on Clauses (iii) & 
(iv) of Schedule II of IPS (Pay) Rules, 1954 (hereinafter referred 
to as "the IPS (Pay) Rules") and hence, there was no anomaly 
at'all. Respondent No. 1 again sent a detailed representation 
dated 6.10.1997 wherein he had elaborately explained the facts 
and the relevant rules with regard to the pay fixation on his 
appointment to the IPS cadre on promotion from the State 
Police Service and t:1e provisions regarding the power of 
relaxation conferred on the Union of India under Rule 6 of 
Section Ill of Schedule II of the IPS (Pay) Rules. However, that 
was also rejected by communication dated 4.1.1998. The 
respondent No.1, therefore, challenged the same by way of 
filing Original Application before the Central Administrative 
UNION OF INDIA v. T.M. SOMARAJAN & OTHERS 
307 
[V.S. SIRPURKAR; J.] 
Tribunal, Ernakulam Ben.ch and sought the following reliefs: 
A 
f. -
1. 
Ca ii for the records leading to Annexure A 1 & A2 
and set aside the same. 
2. 
Issue a direction to the respondents to fix the basic 
pay of the applicant in the post of Superintendent 
B 
of Police (IPS Cadre) at Rs. 4500/- + personal pay 
of Rs. 400/- with effect from 9.12.1995 and 
-.\ 
disburse the arrears of salary due to the applicant. 
3. 
To declare that the applicant is entitled to have his c 
pay fixed in the IPS cadre on the basis of the pay 
drawn by him in the non-IPS cadre is a confirmed 
Superintendent of Police applying the provisions 
contained in Section 1 of Schedule II of the Indian 
Police Service (Pay) Rules without giving effect to D 
1 
the unreasonable definition of higher scale of pay 
contained in Clause Ill of Schedule II of the said 
Rules. 
4. 
To declare that the definition of Higher Scale of pay 
contained in Clause Ill of Schedule II of the Indian 
E 
Police Service (Pay) Rules is unreasonable and 
unworkable and hence should not be enforced for 
fixation of the pay of the applicant in the IPS cadre 
with effect from 9.12.1995. 
F 
5. 
To declare that the definitio
Excerpt shown. Read the full judgment & AI analysis in Lexace.