Not obliged to come to aid of municipal employees not discharging duties: HC
New Delhi: The Delhi High Court Wednesday said it was not obliged to come to the aid of municipal workers and press for payment of their salaries when they were not discharging their functions on ground, leaving the city in a "dismal state".
A bench of Justices Vipin Sanghi and Jasmeet Singh, hearing a batch of petitions on non-payment of salaries and pensions to teachers, hospital staff, sanitation workers and engineers employed by the municipal corporations here, expressed its displeasure at the state of cleanliness and upkeep of the national capital.
"While on one hand, we are pressing for payment of salaries and pensions, it appears that the municipal employees, especially safai karamcharis, are not discharging their duties... As a result, in the city, there is an increase in the case of dengue, collection of garbage and malba, and broken roads and pavements," the bench stated.
"Not a single piece of plastic has been removed from there. It continues to be just as dirty and shabby... cows are eating all that plastic. They will die," remarked Justice Sanghi while referring specifically to the Sainik Farms area.
"They have to do some work. On ground, there is nothing. 100s of crores is rolled out (as salaries and pensions). There is dismal state of affairs. What is happening to the city? Where is the sense of responsibility of the petitioners and the municipal corporations?... At the end of the day, it is the citizens who are suffering. The city is falling. It can''t go down any further," added Justice Singh.
On being informed by the counsel for one of the municipal corporations that the employees go on strike at the drop of a hat, the court clarified that it would "not exercise its discretionary jurisdiction" if the petitioner employees resort to unjustified and frivolous strikes.
"You can''t have it both ways. You can''t put a gun to our head.. They will have to take consequences. Enough is enough," the court said.
"We are not obligated to come to the aid of persons who are not discharging their duties," it stated. During the course of the hearing, counsel for East Delhi Municipal Corporation and South Delhi Municipal Corporation said that as far as payment of salaries and pensions to their employees was concerned, they were up-to-date.
