HC dismisses former Delhi Minorities Commission chief's appeal concerning enhanced salary

The Delhi High Court has dismissed an appeal filed by former Delhi Minorities Commission (DMC) chairperson Zafarul Islam Khan, seeking directions for the grant of benefits under a 2018 cabinet decision enhancing the salary to the post to Rs 2 lakh per month.

A bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad said hiking the salaries of the commission's office-bearers is certainly a policy decision of the State and courts should refrain from interfering in it unless it is arbitrary.

The bench dismissed Khan's appeal and upheld a single judge's order that had said there was no merit in his petition.

The single judge had said the petitioner, who demitted the office on July 19, 2020, did not challenge a 2021 Delhi government notification, which stipulated that the amended salary shall come into effect on the date of the notification and have a prospective effect.

''In the light of the aforesaid judgments, keeping in view the documents on record, the statutory provisions as contained under the DMC Act, 1999, read with the DMC Rules, 2000 and the Amendment Rules, 2021, it can never be said that the amendment has to be made applicable with a retrospective effect in respect of payment of salaries and allowances to the office-bearers of the DMC,'' the division bench said in its October 28 order.

The bench said it did not find any error in the opinion and decision of the single judge and that it was in agreement with the order passed by the single judge in June.

''Increase in the salaries of the office-bearers of a commission is certainly a policy decision of the State and it is no longer res integra (a question that has not been examined) that the courts of law should refrain from interfering with a policy decision of the State unless it is manifestly arbitrary or unreasonable,'' the bench said.

It said the statutory provision governing the field makes it clear that by no stretch of imagination could there be any retrospective application of the notification from the date of the cabinet decision of 2018.

The bench said a perusal of the relevant rules makes it clear that they shall come into force on the date on which they were notified in the Delhi Gazette.

''Further, the minutes of the meeting of the cabinet dated July 17, 2018 nowhere reveal that the same was to be made applicable from the date of the said decision and not the notification to that effect,'' it added.

In his plea, the former DMC chairperson had contended that he was not given the benefit of the notification concerning enhancement of salary on a consolidated basis and the same was illegal and arbitrary.

The appellant had sought directions to ensure that the Delhi government gives effect to its cabinet decision dated July 17, 2018 from the same date and grants him all consequential benefits, including HRA and leave encashment.

He had contended that legal rights emanated from the resolution of the cabinet and there was a denial of equal treatment and discriminatory implementation in the present case.

The Delhi government had said the notification dated June 9, 2021, issued by the Department of Revenue, was prospective and not retrospective, and the cabinet decision nowhere directed or decided that the revised salary and other perks shall be from the date of the said decision and not the notification.