HC to hear DU teachers’ plea on salary dues on Thursday

NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court Monday said it will hear on September 24 a plea by Delhi University teachers seeking direction to the colleges, affiliated to the varsity and fully funded by the AAP government, to release their salaries pending for the last four months.

The plea came up before Justice Jyoti Singh who was informed by the counsel for the teachers that it was a public interest litigation (PIL) and required to be heard by a division bench.

Noting the submission of advocate Ashok Agarwal, appearing for the teachers, the judge said let the matter be listed before an appropriate bench, subject to the order of the Chief Justice, on September 24.

The petition has said apart from these teachers there are other employees, teaching and non-teaching staff, who have not received their salaries for the months of May, June, July and August.

The eight teachers, who have filed the plea through advocate Kumar Utkarsh, said they are members of Delhi University Teachers Association (DUTA), which on behalf of the aggrieved staff, has been writing to the Delhi government for release of funds to enable the 12 DU colleges, funded by the government, to pay due salaries to 1,500 teachers and non-teaching staff working there.

The plea said due to non-payment of salaries to the teachers, they and all other employees working with the 12 colleges are undergoing mental agony and harassment and contended that there is no justification on the part of authorities to not to pay them their dues on time.

“The impugned actions are unjust, unfair, arbitrary, discriminatory, unethical, unconstitutional, violative of Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution of India read with the provisions of Delhi University Act, 1922. “The impugned actions are bad in law as much as the same is violative of right to life as well as right to livelihood as guaranteed under Article 21 of Constitution of India,” the plea contended.

It sought direction to the authorities to pay salaries to the petitioners due from May this year till date and also ensure timely payment of salaries in future.

The plea said the 12 colleges affiliated with the DU and fully funded by the Delhi government are: Acharya Narendra Dev College, Dr Bhim Rao Ambedkar College, Bhaskaracharya College of Applied Sciences, Bhagini Nivedita College, DeenDayal Upadhyaya College, Aditi Mahavidyalaya Women’s College, Indira Gandhi Institute of Physical Education & Sports Sciences, Keshav Mahavidyalaya, Maharaja Agrasen College (DU), Maharshi Valmiki College of Education, Shaheed Rajguru College of Applied Sciences for Women and Shaheed Sukhdev College of Business Studies.

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