High Court Issues Contempt Notice to Punjab Chief Secretary Over False Claims in DA Caseਮਹਿੰਗਾਈ ਭੱਤਾ ਕੇਸ: ਹਾਈਕੋਰਟ ਵੱਲੋਂ ਪੰਜਾਬ ਦੇ ਮੁੱਖ ਸਕੱਤਰ ਨੂੰ ਮਾਣਹਾਨੀ ਦਾ ਨੋਟਿਸ

What happened in court on Tuesday

The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Tuesday issued a notice to Punjab Chief Secretary K. A. P. Sinha, asking him to explain why proceedings of criminal contempt should not be initiated against him. A division bench of Chief Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra and Justice Rohit Kapoor said the material placed on record prima facie showed a 'deliberate misstatement of fact' made by the Chief Secretary before the court.

The court rejected the statement made on Monday by Advocate General Maninderjit Singh Bedi that there were no defects in the state's special leave petition before the Supreme Court. The bench observed: 'From the materials placed on record, we prima facie find that there is a deliberate misstatement of fact made by the Chief Secretary before the Court. We are issuing notice to the Chief Secretary to explain as to why proceedings of criminal contempt be not initiated against him for willfully misleading this Court by making false assertions.'

The Supreme Court appeal and the defects

The dispute concerns Punjab's appeal against the High Court's August 3 judgment ordering the state to release all up-to-date pending instalments of dearness allowance and dearness relief (DA/DR) to its employees and pensioners at the same rates paid to All India Services officers serving in Punjab. That judgment also barred the state from resorting to 'unproductive expenditures' such as large-scale advertising campaigns in print or social media until the dues were paid.

The state challenged the judgment before the Supreme Court. However, the appeal has been lying before the top court's Registry since September 1 on account of defects. On Tuesday, the High Court sought a report from the Supreme Court Registry about the status of the SLP. The bench noted that the report clearly showed the defects pointed out by the Registry had not been removed — in direct contrast to the Chief Secretary's statement on Monday that the government had re-filed the SLP after curing the defects.

A long-running DA dispute

The DA dispute has been building for weeks. The petitioners had earlier told the High Court that despite its orders, the state issued full-page advertisements in newspapers on Independence Day — a spend the court had barred until the dues were cleared. The bench had earlier said that while the state had every right to pursue its appeal, 'that right must be exercised fairly and the proceedings cannot be adjourned indefinitely.' According to The Khalas TV's report, the Chief Secretary has been asked to appear personally before the court on Friday.

Why did the High Court issue the contempt notice?

Because the Supreme Court Registry's report showed the defects in the state's special leave petition had not been removed, contradicting the Chief Secretary's Monday statement that they had been cured and the appeal re-filed.

What was the original DA case about?

In an August 3 judgment, the High Court ordered Punjab to release all pending DA and DR instalments to employees and pensioners at the rates paid to All India Services officers in the state, and restrained the government from unproductive spending such as big advertising campaigns until the dues were paid.

What happens next?

The Chief Secretary must explain why criminal contempt proceedings should not be initiated against him for allegedly misleading the court. The Khalas TV reported he has been asked to appear personally on Friday.