Bombay HC intervention ensures visually-impaired BMC employees get funds for Diwali

After the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) informed the Bombay high court (HC) on Friday that it could not comply with its October 28 order to pay the first

After the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) informed the Bombay high court (HC) on Friday that it could not comply with its October 28 order to pay the first instalment of salary arrears to its 250 visually-impaired employees before Diwali, the court insisted that the civic authority pay some sizeable amount to the aggrieved employees so that they may be able to enjoy Diwali.

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The civic body thereafter informed the court that it would pay a sum of ₹15,000 to the employees before Diwali and pay the remaining arrears along with the December salary. The court accepted the undertaking and kept the interim application pending for compliance till the next hearing on November 24.

A division bench of chief justice Dipankar Datta and justice Girish Kulkarni, while hearing the interim application filed by the BMC in the public interest litigation (PIL) filed by the National Association of the Blind (NAB), was informed by civic body’s advocate, Kejali Mastakar that the application was filed to seek an extension of time to implement the October 28 order of the HC.

On October 28, while disposing of the PIL filed by NAB, the bench had held that the BMC was responsible for its employees, and as they had been exempted by the civic authority from attending duty due to the pandemic situation, they deserved to be paid their salaries. The court had directed the BMC to pay the salary arrears of the visually-impaired employees who were not paid since July, in two instalments – the first instalment being before Diwali, and the second after the festival.

While expressing its inability to comply with the HC order, Mastakar submitted that as the salaries of employees are generated through the SAP platform, the civic authorities could not bypass it. He said that the BMC needed time to reset the attendance of the employees.

The court, however, insisted that the BMC commissioner find a way to pay the disabled employees so that they may enjoy Diwali.

After taking instructions, Mastakar informed the court that the assistant municipal commissioner had confirmed that the employees would be paid ₹15,000 before Diwali, and after the technical problem is resolved, the salary arrears would be paid along with the December salary.

After hearing the undertaking, the court said, “We hope and trust that in the meanwhile, the municipal corporation shall do its best to release payments to the physically-disabled employees, notwithstanding that there have been impediments in the process of disbursement of salary as depicted in the application.”