Contempt charges framed against DG, Health Services

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has framed contempt charges against Dr Manish Bansal, Director General Health Services (DGHS), Haryana, for wilful non-compliance of a prior court order relating to pay parity for Laboratory Technicians (Malaria).

Advertisement

Justice Harkesh Manuja observed that the State's actions amounted to deliberate defiance, manipulation of judicial proceedings, and a clear attempt to render the earlier court orders ineffective. “Such selective denial to identically placed employees interferes with the course of justice,” the court remarked.

The contempt proceedings stem from an order dated April 30, 2024, in which the High Court had directed the State to decide the petitioners’ representation in light of an earlier decision in Rajesh Kumar & Others vs State of Haryana, where similarly placed employees were granted the benefit of equal pay. That decision was upheld by the Supreme Court after dismissal of the State’s appeal on December 17, 2024.

The contempt proceedings were initiated after petitioners Suman Verma (a differently-abled employee) and Busan Lal, both Lab Technicians in the state Health Department, were denied the benefit of a corrected pay scale — a benefit already extended in a similar case. The court had earlier directed the government to pass a reasoned speaking order regarding their representation, but the benefit was arbitrarily denied on procedural grounds, which the court found unacceptable.

The case stems from an anomaly dating back to 1998, when the Haryana Health Department granted a higher pay scale to promoted Lab Technicians than to those directly recruited — a disparity that was challenged. The court ruled in favour of the petitioners on April 18, 2022, directing the State to remove the disparity and release arrears with 9% interest.

Though the Haryana Government complied with the Rajesh Kumar judgment for those specific petitioners, it denied similar relief to Suman Verma and Busan Lal, despite identical service conditions.

Advocate Rajkumar Makkad, representing the petitioners, along with advocate Himani Makkad, stated that the Finance Department was equally responsible for contempt. Accordingly, Dr Anurag Rastogi, Additional Chief Secretary to the Haryana Government (Finance), is also being impleaded to ensure smooth enforcement of court orders.

The matter has been adjourned to April 23 for further proceedings.