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Parity in salaries of police personnel, home guards not possible: Delhi HC
New Delhi
New Delhi
The Delhi High Court has said salaries and perks of police personnel cannot equal that of home guards as their working conditions and recruitment rules are different.
A bench of Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice C Hari Shankar said that while “home guards are engaged on a temporary basis, the employment of police personnel has a permanent feature”.
“Hence salaries and perks being paid to police personnel cannot be equated with salary/remuneration and perks to be paid to home guards. There is no parity between their services condition and hence there cannot be parity in their salary and perks,” the bench said in an order on September 17.
The bench was hearing a plea filed by an NGO, Legal Forum for Women Empowerment, which had sought better facilities for home guards in terms of hikes, pension and other facilities on a par with police officials.
The plea, filed through advocate Payal Bahl, had contended that home guards have to work round the clock and their duties are not different from other police officials.
“Neither the salary nor the perks being paid to the police personnel can be extended to the home guards working in Delhi. Moreover... it appears that enough and adequate care has been taken by the respondents for the home guards, e.g., Rule 18 of the Delhi Home Guards Rules prescribes compensation to be paid to the home guards,” the bench said in a recent order.
The court, while disposing of the plea, noted that salaries paid to the home guards had been hiked from Rs 15,840 per month in 2016 to Rs 20,820 from 2018.
“These two are entirely different cadres; one is temporary in nature and another is permanent in nature; one is a voluntary body whereas another is recruited under Delhi Police Act, 1978,” the court said and disposed of the PIL.
