HC grants relief to 128 PSPCL employees in promotional increment case

Justice Harpreet Singh Brar rules in favour of workers seeking a third promotional increment after 23 years of service; directs PSPCL to pay arrears with 12% interest

The court rejected PSPCL’s inconsistent stand, pointing out that conditions linked to departmental exams were withdrawn in 2010 and later removed altogether in 2018.

In a major relief to employees of the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL), the Punjab and Haryana High Court has directed the corporation to grant promotional increments to petitioners who have completed 23 years of regular service. The order came while disposing of 128 connected writ petitions, marking an important victory for long-serving employees whose career progressions had been stalled by inconsistent departmental policies.

The ruling, delivered by Justice Harpreet Singh Brar in a slew of related cases, draws on established government circulars and earlier judgments. The court held that the issue was “no longer open to doubt,” having already been settled through prior judicial decisions and departmental instructions.

The petitions sought directions to PSPCL to release promotional increments and arrears with 12% interest, citing government circulars and previous court rulings in similar cases. Justice Brar noted that the controversy over the “third promotional increment on completion of 23 years of service” had been addressed repeatedly since the Punjab government’s circulars dated April 23, 1990, July 28, 2000, and November 18, 2011.

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In particular, the court referred to Om Parkash Dua vs Punjab State Electricity Board (2015), where similar claims were upheld. Petitioners’ counsel, including P.K. Goklaney, Brijesh Nandan and Raj Kumar, argued that PSPCL had misread clause (iii) of the 2000 circular, which stated that employees “should not have been placed in a scale higher than the next post.” They cited a 2007 clarification by the Punjab government confirming that even those placed in higher scales remained entitled to the increment after 23 years of service.

Supporting this interpretation, the court noted that PSPCL’s own Board of Directors had, in a 1999 decision, affirmed eligibility for an “advance promotional increment” even for employees already granted 9/16-year promotional scales.

Justice Brar criticised PSPCL for its shifting policies, observing that the department had “been blowing hot and cold” by withdrawing and then reinstating certain eligibility conditions. The order recorded that all earlier conditions for availing advance promotional increments were finally removed from October 1, 2018.

The court concluded that employees, even if in higher pay scales, are entitled to the 23-year promotional increment. PSPCL, represented by advocates Amrit Singh Kang and Sehaj Bir Singh, had opposed the petitions citing pay hierarchy rules, but the bench rejected those arguments.

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The petitions spanned a decade of litigation, and involved over 50 advocates representing petitioners and respondents, including the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) in some cases.

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