HC nixes Tripura’s fixed-pay rule for new hires; state told to pay full scale

Agartala: A division bench of the Tripura high court struck down a 25-year-old state govt policy that mandated fixed pay for the first five years for newly appointed employees recruited through competitive examinations, calling it “unconstitutional”.The policy, introduced by the Left Front govt in 2001 and 2007 for Group C and D posts, required newly recruited employees against sanctioned posts to serve at least five years on fixed pay before being placed on a regular pay scale.The practice continued after the BJP-led govt came to power in 2018, prompting teachers appointed through the Teachers Eligibility Test (TET) to move the high court. After an extended hearing, the court held that all govt employees, including TET teachers, are entitled to draw full regular salary from the first day of employment.Petitioners’ counsel Purushottam Roy Barman said the division bench of chief justice M S Ramachandra Rao and Justice Biswajit Palit heard long-pending writ petitions challenging the policy. “The previous govt's decision to restrict salaries for five years was contested as it violated employees' constitutional rights. The HC has now confirmed that this practice is unconstitutional,” he said.The court said graduate and postgraduate teachers, along with all other govt employees, are entitled to pay as per the regular scale from the date of joining.The 18 employees, who filed the writ petitions, were directed to pay Rs 2,000 each as court costs. The court said employees may pursue further legal action if the govt does not comply with the order.Meanwhile, the Tripura govt has started issuing appointment letters to candidates whose selections were confirmed during the Left Front administration but were later cancelled by the BJP govt in 2018.