Brundaban Behera vs Union Of India & Ors

Swarup Kumar Mishra, Member (J)

The applicant filed OA No. 510/2021 praying as under:

“(i) Let the Original Application be admitted.

(ii) Let this Hon’ble Tribunal be pleased to hold that recovery effected from the salary of the Applicant from August 2020 to January 2021 under Annexure A/8 series is wholly illegal and further be pleased to direct the Respondents to refund back the total amount of Rs.53,396/-.

(iii) Let the Respondents be directed to sanction HRA to the applicant with consequential benefits in lieu of free post attached quarter for the period from August 2020 to till date as per his entitlement.

(iv) To pass any other order or orders to which this Hon’ble Tribunal deems fit and proper.”

This Tribunal vide order dated 06.09.2022/10.09.2022 finally disposed of the O.A., relevant paragraph of which is quoted hereunder:

“As stated above since the payment of HRA is in lieu of the quarters and admittedly the applicant was living outside the quarters on rent, he is entitled to HRA which was rightly paid by the department. In view of the above this Tribunal finds that the recovery from the salary of the applicant as seen from Annexure A/8 series is without due application of mind and the same is unreasonable and arbitrary. This Tribunal further finds that there has been injustice cause to the applicant in the decision making process and the above aspects have not been taken into consideration while carrying out the recovery and stopping of HRA which he is otherwise entitled to under rule and law.

In view of the above discussions, as the applicant did not occupy the quarters in question, the respondents are hereby directed to refund HRA recovered from the applicant for the period from August 2020 to January 2021 and pay him HRA from February 2021 till he is provided with suitable accommodation. Accordingly this OA is allowed to the extent stated above. There shall be no order as to costs.”

By filing MA No. 592/2022, the applicant seeks to modify the order dated 06.09.2022/10.09.2022 to the extent directing the respondents “to refund HRA recovered from the salary of the applicant effected from the period August, 2020 to January, 2021 as per Annexure-A/8 series and further direction to pay him HRA from August, 2020 till he is provided a suitable accommodation” since the applicant has been deprived of his HRA from August, 2020.

Heard the parties and perused the records.

The order of the Court/Tribunal is to be read in its entirety. The order is specific to the extent that payment of HRA is in lieu of the quarters and admittedly the applicant was living outside the quarters on rent, he is entitled to HRA which was rightly paid by the department and the Tribunal finds that there has been injustice caused to the applicant in the decision making process of carrying out the recovery and stopping of HRA which the applicant is otherwise entitled to under rule and law. It is not the case of the applicant that the applicant was denied the HRA after the order of this Tribunal. The applicant would have claimed the HRA from the date, he is entitled to by making application enclosing copy of the order before the authority concerned instead of filing the MA, virtually seeking review of the order dated 06.09.2022/10.09.2022, which is impermissible in law, and is accordingly disposed of, however, with liberty to the applicant to reagitate the matter in accordance with law in case he is further aggrieved by ultimate decision of the authority concerned. No costs.