Gauhati High Court Directs Nagaland Govt To Decide Whether Employees Of Advocate General's Office Are Entitled To Secretariat-Level Pay Scale

The Gauhati High Court at Kohima recently directed the State of Nagaland to decide whether the employees of the establishment of the office of the Advocate General, Nagaland are entitled to the pay scale of Secretariat employees.

The said direction was passed by the single judge bench of Justice Parthivjyoti Saikia while hearing an application under Article 226 of the Constitution of India praying, more particularly for the grant of Secretariat Level Pay Scale to a UDA posted in the office of the Advocate General, Nagaland, in the Pay Band of Level-14 of existing Nagaland ROP.

It was the case of the petitioner that he was appointed as an LDA-cum-Typist on contract basis for four months in the office of the establishment of the Advocate General, Nagaland at Guwahati with pay scale of Rs.450- Rs.805/-. By and order dated November 17, 1989, the service of the petitioner was extended until further order. Subsequently, by the order dated December 13, 2002, the contractual service of the petitioner was regularised with effect from March 03, 1993.

By an order dated March 07, 2006 passed by the Principal Secretary to the Government Nagaland, Department of Justice and Law, the post of the petitioner was upgraded to the post of UDA. The petitioner was given the officiating pay to the post of UDA vide order dated March 07, 2006.

In the meantime, the petitioner had filed a writ petition before the High Court praying for making LDA and the UDA posts in the establishment of the Advocate General equal to the similar posts of State Secretariat of Nagaland.

While disposing of the said writ petition, the High Court had taken note of the fact that the Advocate General, Government of Nagaland by communication, dated May 22, 2013, addressed to the Additional Chief Secretary to the Government of Nagaland, had forwarded an application made by the petitioner claiming pay scale at par with the Secretariat employees.

The Counsel appearing for the petitioner also pointed out that the communication dated September 4, 2015 also states that the office of the Advocate General, Nagaland falls under the Secretariat level.

The present writ petition was filed by the petitioner with following prayers:

1. to set aside the impugned regularisation order dated September 27, 2019 and direct the Secretary, Government of Nagaland to regularise the petitioner in the post of UDA from the date of his officiating promotion;
2. the petitioner should be given the Secretariat Pay Scale of Level 14.

The Additional Senior Government Advocate appearing for the State of Nagaland submitted that the first prayer of the petitioner has been accepted by the Government of Nagaland vide Corrigendum No.LAW-165/71(A).

The Counsel appearing for the State respondents pointed out that when the petitioner was appointed in the service, at that time, a report of the 3^rd Pay Commission was in force and the petitioner was given the pay scale of District Level LDA-cum-Typist. Therefore, it was submitted that the petitioner is not entitled to Secretariat-level pay scale.

The Counsel appearing for the petitioner contended that it is an admitted fact that the establishment of the office of the Advocate General, Nagaland is equivalent to the post of Secretary in the State Secretariat and that is why, this Court in the previous writ petition filed by the petitioner, had directed the petitioner to file a representation seeking pay scale at par with the Secretariat employees and also directed the State to consider the representation of the petitioner, which is a part of the communication made by the Advocate General, Nagaland on May 22, 2013.

The Court directed that if the office of the Advocate General is equivalent to the office of a Secretary of the State of Nagaland, the State shall decide whether the employees of the establishment of the office of the Advocate General, Nagaland are entitled to the pay scale of Secretariat employees' pay scale.

Citation: 2024 LiveLaw (Gau) 25

Case Title: Shri Surjit Singh v. The State of Nagaland & 3 Ors.

Case No.: WP(C)/131/2023

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