HP High Court Gets Tough on HRTC: Vehicle Seized Over Non-Payment of Employee Arrears
Orders Payment Within 3 Weeks, Over 300 Similar Cases Pending
Shimla: The Himachal Pradesh High Court has held HRTC accountable for delaying the payment of arrears to its staff. Rejecting HRTC’s argument of financial constraints, the Court ordered immediate seizure of the corporation's vehicle (Etios - HP-07-B-0222). The Court further directed that the vehicle must not be used until further orders.
Justice Satyen Vaidya, presiding over the matter, directed HRTC to clear all pending arrears within three weeks. The Court warned that failure to comply would result in punitive action against the corporation.
Present in the court were HRTC’s Managing Director Dr. Nipun Jindal, Financial Advisor Manmeet Verma, and Deputy Divisional Manager (Legal) Madan Lal Sharma.
HRTC had informed the court that it had requested ₹50 crore from the government to pay the arrears but was currently unable to do so. The Court, however, rejected this plea, stating that financial issues cannot be used as a reason to indefinitely delay compliance with judicial orders. The Court noted that HRTC had already been given eight months to act, and further delay would be unfair to the petitioners.
It is worth noting that nearly 300 similar cases related to arrear payments are pending in the Court. The next hearing on those matters is scheduled for September 12, while the present case will be heard again on September 26.
3 Comments