NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Saturday, November 13, 2021, refused to give any relief to Uttar Pradesh state finance secretary and the additional chief secretary (revenue) from arrest against whom the Allahabad high court had issued bailable warrants for not adhering to its order.
A bench headed by Chief Justice of India N V Ramana termed the act of both the officers as arrogant and said, “You deserve all this. More than that. What are you arguing here in this matter. The high court should have ordered arrest by now, we think more severe punishment was needed to be awarded. The high court has been gentle with you. Look at your conduct, you are depriving an employee of his arrears. The high court has been very kind to you. This additional chief secretary appears to be very arrogant.”
The matter is related to regularisation of service and payment of arrears to a collection amin in Allahabad.
On November 1, the high court observed that the officials have been treating the court as a playground and have refused to grant arrears of salary to a person who was earlier denied the rightful claim of regularisation of service.
“As the respondents (officers) have deliberately flouted the undertaking given by the additional advocate general in not granting arrears of salary to the petitioner, this court records it distress and anguish about the reprehensible conduct of the respondents, and accordingly, believes that it a fit case to issue bailable warrant against additional chief secretary (revenue) and Sanjay Kumar, the then district magistrate currently posted as secretary (finance), the government of UP, Lucknow to appear before this court on November 15. Let bailable warrant be issued,” the high court had ordered.
The state government had approached the top court to save the top officials from getting arrested. Additional solicitor general Aishwarya Bhati, appearing for the officials, said the service of the petitioner, Bhuneshwar Prasad Tiwari, as collection amin had been regularised.