Interpret rules beneficially to protect families of staff posted at ‘non-family' stations: HC
Chandigarh: The Punjab and Haryana high court has held that families of govt staff transferred to "non-family stations" with harsh conditions or security concerns should be allowed to retain their official accommodation.
The court emphasised a "beneficial interpretation" of rules to prioritise the welfare and stability of employees' families.
The ruling came from a division bench of Justice Anupinder Singh Grewal and Justice Deepak Manchanda, who dismissed a petition by the Centre. The Union govt had challenged a Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) order that quashed a penal rent imposed on a joint director of the Military Engineering Service (MES) from July 16, 2020, to Dec 2, 2020.
The case involved an MES officer initially posted in Chandigarh, who was allotted a Type-V house in Sector 38-A in May 2012. Upon transfer to the Leh zone in Oct 2015, a non-family station, he was permitted to retain his Chandigarh accommodation. He was subsequently transferred to another non-family station, Udhampur zone, in June 2018, and was again granted permission to retain the Chandigarh accommodation until June 18, 2020.
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Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, an extension was granted to all allottees until July 15, 2020.
When the officer failed to vacate, he was issued a show-cause notice for unauthorised occupation and directed to deposit penal rent. He eventually vacated the accommodation on Dec 2, 2020, after depositing Rs 4,39,764 as penal rent.
The CAT later quashed the penal rent order, prompting the central govt to appeal to the high court.
The high court, however, upheld the CAT's decision, observing that the transfers to Leh and Udhampur should be considered independent, allowing the officer to retain accommodation for three years from the June 18, 2018, transfer, or until June 30, 2021, whichever was earlier.
In its detailed order released Monday, the bench stated that the officer could not be deemed an unauthorised occupant, thus invalidating the penal rent.
The court further directed the government to refund the penal rent to the officer's family, as he passed away during the litigation, with interest, within one month.
The high court also reiterated a fundamental legal principle: when statutory provisions are clear, they must be given their natural meaning. The court emphasised that it is not the role of the judiciary to delve into legislative intent or alter the wording of the law, as that power rests solely with the legislature.
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