New Delhi, Nov 5 — The Supreme Court on Thursday stayed further proceedings in the criminal contempt case initiated against Punjab Chief Secretary K.A.P. Sinha and other officials by the Punjab and Haryana High Court over the non-payment of pending Dearness Allowance (DA) arrears to government employees and pensioners.
A bench of Justices B.V. Nagarathna and R. Mahadevan also directed that no coercive steps be taken against the Chief Secretary in the civil contempt proceedings, granting interim relief to the Punjab government against both sets of contempt proceedings.
However, the apex court asked the state government to come up with a concrete plan for disbursal of the outstanding dues by March 2027, indicating that it would expect a positive response on the payment of arrears.
"You got a breather. Come up with a positive response. How much will you release?" the Justice Nagarathna-led Bench orally observed while adjourning the matter to December.
Taking note of the background of the dispute between the parties, the Supreme Court directed that further proceedings in the criminal contempt case will remain stayed until further orders.
The matter reached the apex court after the Punjab government challenged the High Court's orders in both civil and criminal contempt proceedings arising from its failure to implement directions for the release of pending DA and Dearness Relief (DR) instalments.
During the civil contempt proceedings, the High Court had imposed costs of Rs 1 lakh on the Chief Secretary for failing to file a compliance report in accordance with its earlier directions.
The contempt proceedings stem from an August 3 judgment of the Punjab and Haryana High Court directing the state government and the Punjab State Power Corporation Ltd (PSPCL) to release all pending DA and DR instalments to their employees and pensioners at rates equivalent to those applicable to All India Services officers serving in Punjab, in accordance with the Central government pattern.
The High Court had directed that the outstanding payments be released within a fortnight and stipulated that any delay beyond the prescribed period would attract simple interest at six per cent per annum until actual payment.
Subsequently, the High Court had initiated contempt proceedings over the alleged failure to comply with its directions despite repeated opportunities granted to the state government. On November 3, the High Court had issued a contempt notice to Chief Secretary Sinha over the continued non-compliance with its directions and sought his response by November 17.
The state government had informed the High Court that it had challenged the August 3 judgment before the Supreme Court, but the High Court had clarified that the mere filing of an appeal does not suspend the operation of its directions unless a stay is granted by the apex court.
Meanwhile, the Punjab and Haryana High Court on Thursday adjourned the criminal contempt matter after being informed that the Supreme Court was hearing the state government's special leave petition (SLP) challenging the orders passed in the contempt proceedings.