DEVENDRA KUMAR SINGHversusADMINISTRATOR, BIHAR COOP. MKT. UNION LTD. AND ANR.

A                            DEVENDRA KUMAR SINGH
                                           v.
        ADMINISTRATOR, BIHAR COOP. MKT. UNION LTD. AND ANR.

                                   APRIL 25, 2006

B                      [S.B. SINHA AND P.P. NAOLEKAR, JJ.)


          Service law:

          Public Sector Undertaking-Payment of salary to employees-Denial
C of-Held: If State fails to comply with its constitutional obligations, it must
    take appropriate steps so that employee should not be deprived of his legal
    rights to obtain salary-Division Bench of the High Court erred in reversing
    the order of the Single Judge for payment of salary to the employee till
    closing a'own of the employer organization in terms of the directions of the
D   Supreme Court in a matter on the similar issue ·-·Constitution of India,
    1950--Article 12.

          Constitution of India, Article 226:

           Writ jurisdiction of High Court-Held: It cannot be enlarged--If any
E   cause of action arises therefor, it would be open to the employee to ventilate
    its grievances before an appropriate Forum.

           The appellant, an employee of the Bihar State cooperative Marketing
    Union Limited (BrSCOMAUN) had not been paid his salary since January,
    1996. He filed a writ petition before the Patna High Court. Single Judge of
F   the High Court by order dated 27.9.2000 directed the employer for payment
    of salary to the Appellant. Aggrieved, the employer preferred a Letters Patent
    Appeal thereagainst, which was allowed by a Division Bench of the High Court
    reversing the order of the Single Judge. Hence the present appeal.

          Allowing the appeal, the Court
G
          HELD: I.I. The legal right of the appellant-employee to obtain salary
    has not been disputeu. An order which may not be executed easily is distinct
    and different from declaration of a legal right. While issuing a writ, the Court
    is not concerned as to whether there is an inter se dispute between

H                                         282
  DEVENDRA KUMAR SINGH 1·. ADMINISTRATOR, BIHAR COOP. MKT. UNION LID. [SINHA, J.] 283


BISCOMAUN, the Public Sector Undertaking and the State of Bihar as                      A
regards their respective liability. 1284-GI

       l.2. The Single Judge of the High Court was entirely correct in
observing that if a State within the meaning of Article 12 of the Constitution
of India is not in a position to comply with its constitutional obligations, it
must try to find out a way itself to take appropriate steps in that behalf but          B
the same would not mean that the appellant could have been deprived of his
legal right to obtain salary. 1284-H; 285-A)

      Kapila Hingorani v. State of Bihar, 12003) 6 SCC 1, referred to.

      l.3. The scope of the writ petition could not be enlarged. If any cause of        C
action arises therefor, it would be open to the concerned employees to ventilate
their grievances before an appropriate forum. In the light of the reasons as
aforementioned, the judgment of the Division Bench of the High Court is wholly
unsustainable, hence set aside. 1285-EJ

      CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION : Civil Appeal No. 7659 of2002.                      D

      From the Judgment and Final Order dated 19.7.2001 of the High Court
of Judicature at Patna in L.P.A. No. 401/2001.

      Sunil Kumar, Anita Kanungo and Himanshu Shekhar for the Appellant.                E
     Dinesh Dwivedi, Kailash Vasdev, S.K. Sinha, Ritu Ras Biswas, Gopal
Singh and B.B. Singh (NP) for the Respondents.

      The Judgment of the Court was delivered by

       S.B. SINHA, J. The Appellant herein is an employee of the Bihar State            F
Cooperative Marketing Union Limited (for short "BISCOMAUN"). He had not
been paid his salary from the month of January, 1996. He filed a writ petition
before the Patna High Court. No dispute was raised as regard his legal right
to receive salary or the quantum thereof. On the aforementioned premise, a
learned Single Judge of the High Court by an order dated 27.9.2000 while                G
directing payment of salary to the Appellant herein observed:

        "This Court is constrained to note here that admittedly the respondents
        are not in a position to pay even salary to the employees since
        October, 1995, such institution/ organization must not exist. In my
        opinion, all such institutions/ organizations must be immediately closed        H
    284                      SUPREME COURT REPORTS (2006] SUPP. I S.C.R.

A          down by resorting to winding up proceeding in the light of the Full
           Bench decision of this Court in the case of Mani Kant Pathak & Ors.
           v. The State of Bihar, reported in ( 1997) (I) PLJR 664.

                However, in the counter affidavit, it is not even indicated that any
            such step has been taken, so far. Accordingly, this writ petition is
B           allowed with cost of Rs. 2000/- to be paid by the Head of the
            Organisation, namely, the Administrator from his pocket to the petitioner
            with all his dues within two weeks from the date of receipt of
            communication of this order, failing which he shall not draw his salary
            and other allowances till the order is complied."

C        BISCOMAUN preferred a Letters Patent Appeal thereagainst. A Division
    Bench of the High Court by an order dated 19. 7 .200 I set aside the said
    judgment and order of the learned Single Judge holding:

            "The BISCOMAUN is running in loss. It has no fund even to meet
            day-to-day expenses and the salary is not being paid to its employees.
D           Even the Administrator has been appointed on part time basis. The
            fact that whether the State Government will take necessary steps for
            winding up of the said Society or not, it is for them to decide and on
            that ground direction cannot be made for payment of salary to
            respondent no. 1 because it is an admitted position that no fund is
E           available to the BISCOMAUN. Therefore, no futile writ can be issued
            and thus the direction issued by the learned Single Judge for payment
            of salary and the cost awarded to the Administrator is set aside.
            However, it is made clear that as and when the fund will be available,
            the salary of the respondent along with other employees shall be
            paid."
F
          The Appellant is, thus, before us.

           We do not appreciate the approach of the Division Bench. A citizen
    knocks the doors of the High Court for obtaining relief to which he is entitled
    to. In this case, the legal right of the Appellant to obtain salary has not been
G   disputed. An order which may not be executed easily is distinct a:id different
    from declaration of a legal right. While issuing a writ, the court is not
    concerned as to whether there is an inter se dispute between BISCOMAUN
    and the State of Bihar as regards their respective liability.

          The learned Single Judge, in our opinion, was entirely correct in
H observing that if a State within the meaning of Article 12 of the Constitution
  DEVENDRA KUMAR SINGH''· ADMINISTRATOR, BJHAR COOP. MKT. UNION LTD. [SINHA, J.] 285


of India is not in a position to comply with its constitutional obligations, it        A
must try to find out a way itself to take appropriate steps in that behalf but
the same would not meari that the Appellant could have been deprived of his
legal right to obtain salary.

      It, however, appears that by an order dated 29.4.2002, a Division Bench
of this Court directed the State of Bihar to ·pay salary for one year each to          B
the employees of BI SCOMA UN.

     The State, however, denies and disputes its right to pay salary to the
employees of BISCOMAUN.

      Mr. Sunil Kumar urges that this Court may issue appropriate directions           C
to the State of Biharto pay salary to all the employees of BISCOMAUN. We
cannot accede to such a prayer for more than one reason. Firstly, because it
is not a case where this Court has the requisite materials to issue such general
direction. Secondly, no case has been made out by the employees of
BISCOMAUN to attract the law laid.down by this Court in Kapi/a Hingorani               D
v. State of Bihar, [2003] 6 SCC I.

        In this situation, we do not intend to enlarge the. scope of the writ
petition. If any cause of action arises therefor, it would pe open to the
concerned employees to ventilate their grievances before an appropriate
forum. We, however, for the reasons aforementioned;.are .of the opinion that           E
the judgment of the Division Bench of the High Court is wholly unsustainable.
It is set aside accordingly. The appeal is allowed. The Respondent No; 2 shall
also bear the cost of this appeal. Counsel's fee assessed at Rs. 5000/-.

S.K.S ..                                                         Appeal allowed.