Srinagar: The J&K and Ladakh High Court has ordered the managing director Jammu and Kashmir Cements Limited (JKCL) to go for the asset monetization of the company to pay for the salaries of its employees.
Hearing a petition by the employees of JKCL that their salaries are over due to them for so many months, Justice Sanjeev Kumar directed the managing director of the company to arrange the requisite funds to meet the liability.
“To do that the managing director shall approach the Government or dispose of some assets of the respondent-company. The whole exercise culminating into the actual disbursement of the arrears of the salary whatever due to the petitioners shall be completed within a period of three months”, Justice Kumar directed.
The petition for and on behalf of employees of JKCL said that though the petitioners have been performing their duties to the best satisfaction yet for the reasons best known to the respondent authorities, their monthly salaries are not being disbursed regularly.
The matter initially came before the court on 19th November 2018, wherein a notice was issued to the respondents to file objections. They were also directed to ensure payment of monthly salary to the petitioner employees on regular basis.
The order of the court was not complied with and the petitioners filed a contempt petition against the then chief secretary B V R Subramanyan and others in 2021.
In the statement of facts filed in response to the contempt petition, the respondent authorities did not deny that the salary of the petitioners for some months was pending.
But they submitted that because of JKCL having gone into losses, it was bereft of any funds to disburse the salary of the petitioners. The then managing director of the company candidly admitted that the salary of about 22 months of various employees was still pending disbursement.
The statement of facts was filed on 8th March, 2021.
During the pendency of the writ petition and the contempt petition some of the employees have retired on superannuation. Many others have been adjusted by the government in its different departments.
Counsel for the petitioners submitted that so far as the employees, who are adjusted in various departments are concerned, they are now receiving their salary regularly and to that extent the petitioners have no grievance.
He, however, submitted that salary for some months when they were working in the JKCL is still outstanding. He further submitted that such arrears of salary are also payable to those petitioners who have now retired on superannuation.
After hearing the parties the court directed the respondent authorities to approach the government for the funds or dispose off some of the assets company to pay for the pending salaries of the employees.
