DA case: HC asks Punjab CS why criminal contempt shouldn’t be initiated

High court finds top bureaucrat made a “prima facie false statement” regarding an appeal in the Supreme Court; hearing deferred to Friday.

Chandigarh: The Punjab and Haryana high court on Tuesday directed Punjab chief secretary KAP Sinha to explain why criminal contempt proceedings should not be initiated against him for making a “prima facie false statement” in the ongoing dearness allowance (DA) case.

The high court directive came during a hearing on two applications filed by Punjab government employees and pensioners, who alleged non-compliance with the court’s August 3 judgment. (HT file photo)

A bench, comprising chief justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra and justice Rohit Kapoor, issued the order in Sinha’s presence. The action followed revelations that the Punjab government’s appeal remains lodged with defects before the Supreme Court, directly contradicting Sinha’s Monday statement that a fresh appeal had been filed after curing all defects.

The directive came during a hearing on two applications filed by Punjab government employees and pensioners, who alleged non-compliance with the court’s August 3 judgment.

In that ruling, the court ordered the state to release all pending DA installments to employees and pensioners on a par with central government rates paid to All India Services (IAS/IPS/IFS) officers within a fortnight. The court also barred the state from indulging in “unproductive expenditures”, such as large-scale print or social media ad campaigns, until all dues were settled, directing the chief secretary to file a compliance affidavit by August 31.

The government failed to meet the deadline, filing an appeal in the apex court on September 1. A month later, the Supreme Court is yet to hear the matter because the state has not rectified defects flagged by the apex court’s registry.

Seeking clarity amid conflicting claims from petitioners and the state, the high court requested a status report from the Supreme Court registry on October 5. Tuesday’s report confirmed the appeal was still defective, prompting petitioner counsels to demand contempt action against Sinha.

Senior advocate Vikas Singh, representing the Punjab government, accused the petitioners of “bench-hunting” and cited tedious documentation processes in state appeals while seeking an adjournment.

While agreeing to defer the hearing to Friday, the bench took serious note of the chief secretary’s statement, ordering him to show cause against criminal proceedings and requiring his personal presence at the next hearing.

The detailed order is awaited.