2nd attachment warning to North MCD from HC
New Delhi: Coming down heavily on the North Delhi Municipal Corporations (North MCD) for not paying the salaries of its employees, whose cries, the court said, "have fallen on deaf ears" of the authorities, a division bench of the Delhi High Court has said — pulling up the civic body for not having taken steps to augment its resources and for leaving pensioners and employees to fight their cases in courts.
The division bench of Justices Vipin Sanghi and Jasmeet Singh made these observations while hearing a matter related to disbursement of unpaid salaries to employees and retired personnel of the North MCD.
During the course of hearing, Advocate Divya Prakash Pande, Standing Counsel for both SDMC and North MCD, submitted that salaries till the month of May for health workers, nurses, among others, falling in Group D employees, had been released on Thursday morning.
However, he told the court: "I'm in a shortfall of two months' salaries. I have a certain amount with me and my revenues are coming to me...by coupling it we can pay the salaries. But they are not giving us the dues. They are crippling us".
On this, a visibly irritated Justice Singh remarked, "What is the fault of the employees? They have their bills to pay. How does it help the petitioners who are before us? You have these huge properties, why don't you do something?"
Justice Singh further said that he doesn't understand as to how long it takes to generate funds out of the properties owned by the municipalities. "It's very easy to say that the government was to pay the funds to you by July. It's all conjectures...a person who worked sincerely, at the end of the day, wants his salary sincerely. He is not concerned about your internal issues...it pains us to see, a person who has worked hard the whole month isn't getting his salary," the court orally remarked.
However, Advocate Pande argued that the corporation had already floated tenders for their properties and were also demarcating them. "There was a backlog of six months...today it's just two months' backlog. The corporation is working on the aspect…," he argued. However, Justice Singh stated that the authorities are going at a "snail's pace'' which is putting a question mark on their intent.
Justice Sanghi too warned the corporations that the employees had to be paid even if it meant attaching the authorities' properties and assets like he had warned in an earlier hearing. "Let's be clear, these people have to be paid. If it comes to it, we have said that we will attach your properties, We will not do it today only in case you show us today what sincere steps you have taken to augment the salaries," Justice Sanghi remarked.
Advocate Pande further stated that they have written various letters to the Delhi government to release the due money but have not received an appropriate response. However, Senior Advocate Rahul Mehra, on behalf of the Delhi government, argued that the corporations weren't able to make themselves "financially prudent. "They are unable to discharge their functions...they can take the benefit of ongoing pandemic and financial crunch…," Mehra submitted.
At one point, Justice Singh orally remarked that he is pained to see such people coming to courts and their need to hire lawyers and tell the bench that they are not being paid. "You're doing your job but we're pained at the entire callousness. It's shocking…," he stated.
Subsequently, in its order, the court noted that the corporation should adopt an independent and a self-sustaining economic model to fulfill its obligations under the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act and passed a slew of directions for the North MCD and the Delhi government to follow so that salaries can be cleared.
Taking exception to the North civic body's reluctance to give away its hospitals to the Centre or state government despite the lack of funds, the court stated that it was supposed to be decided by the body based on financial prudence.
"It cannot have a situation where on one hand the North MCD isn't able to meet even its most fundamental obligation of paying salaries to employees and pensioners and on the other hand, it insists on retaining and running hospitals which do not generate any revenue," the court stated, asking the corporation to file an affidavit making full disclosure of all revenue sources within two weeks.
