After taking oath, Chief Justice says court will act strictly in accordance with law and defend its constitutional oath during DA case hearing

Chandigarh, 07 September (H.S.): Newly appointed Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, Justice Ashwani Mishra, said on Monday that the court would not be influenced by any kind of pressure tactics and would defend the oath it had taken under the Constitution. He made the observation during the hearing of applications related to pending Dearness Allowance (DA) and Dearness Relief (DR) dues of Punjab government employees and pensioners.

Justice Mishra took oath as Chief Justice on Monday. He subsequently sat on a Division Bench along with Justice Rohit Kapoor. During the hearing, he made it clear that the court would be influenced neither by the petitioners nor by the government. He said the institution would function in accordance with the rule of law and would not yield to any pressure tactics.

In August, the High Court Division Bench had directed the Punjab government to release the pending DA/DR instalments of employees and pensioners by August 31. The court had also asked the government to avoid unproductive expenditure, including large-scale advertising campaigns, until the dues were cleared. The Punjab government has challenged the decision before the Supreme Court.

Two applications connected with the order were listed for hearing on Monday. Senior Advocate Chetan Mittal, appearing for one of the applicants, submitted that the government had not filed the compliance affidavit as directed by the court. Senior Advocate Sanjay Kaushal also raised the issue of the appeal filed before the Supreme Court and the procedural defects pointed out by its registry. He further referred to the state government's advertising expenditure and funds released to women on the occasion of Raksha Bandhan. These were submissions made on behalf of the applicants.

Counsel for the Punjab government objected to the submissions. The Division Bench stated that it had not fully examined the case file and, therefore, adjourned the detailed hearing to Thursday. The court reiterated that it would hear both sides and proceed strictly in accordance with law.

On Sunday, the Punjab Cabinet had passed a resolution seeking that Justice Mishra's appointment and oath-taking be deferred until the state government's views were considered. However, Punjab Governor Gulab Chand Kataria administered the oath of office to him on Monday. Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann did not attend the ceremony.

Hindusthan Samachar / GURSHARAN SINGH