Meghalaya High Court: The Bench comprising of Mohammad Yaqoob Mir, CJ. and S.R. Sen, J. directed the government to adhere to the principles of equal pay for equal work.
The writ petition was filed wherein it was contended that the government teachers were getting their pension and other benefits after their retirement while the deficit/Adhoc/aided college teachers were not getting anything except the Contributory Provident Fund (CPF).
It was to be admitted that both the categories were equally qualified who gave the same services rather some teachers in the deficit colleges were giving better service than the government teachers along with the fact that the former were also assigned with other duties from time to time. Thus it was against Articles 14, 16 and 39(d) of the Constitution of India as it was in deprivation of their right to receive a pension which was a post-retirement necessity.
The Court appreciating the petition stated that, “We must remember that teachers are the backbone of the society and it is through their contribution, dedication and hard work which has molded us to become what we are today; be it a Judge, a Minister, a Lawyer, a Doctor or an IAS Officer etc., and that, we can never forget.” Hence the respondent shall strictly adhere to the spirit the principle of Doctrine of Equality, Articles 14, 16 and 39(d) of the Directive Principles of State Policy of the Constitution of India i.e., equal pay for equal work.
Accordingly, the Court provided for the correction of the Contributory Provident Fund immediately with retrospective effect.[Meghalaya College Teachers Association v. State of Meghalaya,2018 SCC OnLine Megh 218, decided on 01-11-2018]
