SC steps in to stop Bihar’s Bloodless Murder

The plight of Bihar government employees was first highlighted by The Sunday Express on August 25 last year.

A series of Express reports called Bihar’s Bloodless Murder provided a graphic account of how nearly 40,000 employees of the Bihar government — from school and college teachers to typists, clerks, sweepers, accountants — had been reduced to penury, not paid salaries for at least 10 years.

The Supreme Court bench today directed the Patna High Court to utilise the money for disbursal of the salaries of 19 corporations under the Bihar government which had not paid salaries to their employees for years together.

The petitioner had alleged that non-payment of salaries had driven the employees to a state of penury and several had committed suicide, unable to bear the poverty and the pitiable condition of their family members.

When counsel for Bihar government B B Singh expressed the state’s inability to deposit Rs 50 crore in a month, the court said the government could deposit Rs 25 crore in the first month and the balance in the next month.

The court directed the High Court to dispose all liquidation proceedings in respect of government corporations, owned and controlled by the state government, as expeditiously as possible and pass interim orders for sale and disposal of the properties thereof for utilisation of the same towards payment of employees’ salaries.

The apex court directed the High Court to constitute a committee, comprising retired judges of the High Court or sitting district judges, to scrutinise the assets and liabilities of sick government corporations. The committee would submit a report in this regard to the High Court within three months, the bench said, adding all expenses of the committee would be borne by the state.

‘‘The High Court shall be entitled to issue requisite directions to the said committee from time to time as and when it deems fit and proper,’’ the Chief Justice said pronouncing the interim order. While asking the state to deposit Rs 50 crore, the bench said ‘‘The High Court shall see to it that the sum so deposited and, or otherwise received from any source including by way of sale of assets of the government companies and public sector undertakings, be paid proportionately to concerned employees wherefore the parties may file their claim before it.’’

‘‘The High Court, however, in its discretion, may direct disbursement of some funds to the needy employees on ad hoc basis so as to enable them to sustain themselves for the time being,’’ the Chief Justice said and added that rights of the workmen should be considered in terms of Section 529 of the Companies Act.

The apex court directed the Union government to take decision as regards division of assets and liabilities of the government companies and public sector undertakings between the states of Bihar and Jharkhand in terms of the State Reorganisation Act and issued notice to Jharkhand while impleading it as a necessary party in the case.

In Patna, a wave of jubilation swept through families of the employees of 19 Bihar government-owned boards and corporations when they heard of the Supreme Court directions.

‘‘We are thrilled by the apex court order as it is like the light at the end of the tunnel,’’ Gopal Tiwari, office secretary of Bihar Lok Upkram Bachao Samiti said.

An employee of the Bihar State Industrial Development Corporation, Tiwari said he had not received salary for over 17 months and added ‘‘the condition of my colleagues is no different.’’

‘‘At least four of my colleagues died either of starvation or due to their inability to pay for medical treatment. Even an under secretary fainted in his office a couple of days ago due to hunger. The Minister for Industries was kind enough to hand over Rs 500 for his treatment but the amount was inadequate,’’ Tiwari said.

The apex court order came as succour to Jagdish Mandal, an employee of the state construction corporation, who had sought permission of his managing director to sell off one of his kidneys to pay for the treatment of his ailing wife and a mentally challenged son.

Reacting to the Supreme Court judgement, Bihar Industries Minister Vishwa Mohan Sharma said the government was yet to receive a copy of the judgement. ‘‘We will take a stand only after going through the judgement which will be discussed in the state cabinet,’’ he said.

Labour Minister Upendra Prasad Verma said the governmemnt would respect the SC verdict and, at the same time, undertake an exercise to ascertain whether the appointments made to the different boards and corporations were genuine.

Ashwini Kumar, convener of the Bihar Lok Upkram Bachao Samiti, claimed at least 1400 employees of various state-owned corporations and boards had died over the last few years due to starvation and lack of medical attention.

Parijat Bhattacharjee, an employee of the Bihar State Agro Industries Corporation whose son Chandan had allegedly committed self-immolation outside the Patna High Court on August 15 last year to protest non-payment of salary to his father, could not be reached for comments.

His colleague Samuel Elias said Bhattacharjee, his daughter and an ailing son had shifted to Delhi last month. ‘‘He was totally distraught after Chandan’s self-immolation. He shifted to Delhi and we don’t know where he is now,’’ Elias said.