State Can’t Rewrite Pay Commission Rules to Deny Benefits: Supreme Court

The Supreme Court held that the government cannot deny Pay Commission benefits by introducing conditions that are not part of the rules or recommendations.

The case involved denial of Non-Functional Upgradation (NFU) to Junior Engineers despite fulfilling the prescribed criteria. Authorities attempted to restrict eligibility by imposing an additional requirement related to entry-level pay, which was not part of the scheme.

Rejecting this approach, the Court emphasised that such conditions amount to rewriting the rules.

It upheld the Delhi High Court’s decision, ruling that once the stipulated requirements are met, benefits cannot be arbitrarily withheld.

[UOI v. Sunil Kumar Rai & Ors.]