Rajasthan High Court Mandates Salary Parity for Court Staff with Strict Deadline
The Rajasthan High Court has issued a firm directive to the state government, demanding immediate action to ensure salary parity between employees of the high court and those working in district and sessions courts. A division bench comprising Justice Sudesh Bansal and Justice Ashutosh Kumar delivered this order on Friday while hearing a contempt petition, setting a clear one-week deadline for compliance.
Court Reaffirms 2019 Order on Pay Scale Equivalence
The bench explicitly referenced its previous order from February 10, 2019, which established that positions within the high court are equivalent to those in district courts and should therefore command identical pay scales. The petitioner, Rajesh Jain, argued that despite this longstanding directive, the order remained unimplemented, with district court employees continuing to receive higher salaries than their high court counterparts.
During the proceedings, Raghvendra Kachwal, the Principal Secretary of Law, represented the state government. The court expressed clear dissatisfaction with the government's response regarding compliance, noting that the finance department had requested additional time to reach a final decision and execute the necessary measures.
One-Week Deadline and Warning of Consequences
Granting a brief extension, the bench allowed one week for the government to ensure full compliance. The court emphasized that the state must act promptly to resolve the parity issue. It made an unequivocal warning: if the government fails to adhere to the reinstated directives by the deadline, both the Principal Secretary of Law and the Secretary of Finance will be required to appear personally before the court on March 12 to account for the delay.
The court's order underscores the legal imperative for salary equity among judicial staff, highlighting potential repercussions for state officials in cases of non-compliance. This development marks a significant step toward addressing long-standing disparities in the compensation structure within Rajasthan's judiciary, ensuring fair treatment for all court employees across different levels of the judicial system.
