Chief secretaries of 18 states, UTs appear in SC over SNJPC non-compliance

The top court took note of compliance affidavits of states and union territories and ordered the closure of proceedings against them

Chief secretaries of 18 states and union territories appeared before the Supreme Court on Tuesday over alleged non-implementation of the Second National Judicial Pay Commission's (SNJPC) recommendations on payment of pension arrears and retirement benefits to judicial officers.

The top court took note of compliance affidavits of states and union territories like Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Meghalaya, Himachal Pradesh, West Bengal, Bihar, Odisha, Kerala and Delhi and ordered the closure of proceedings against them.

A bench comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) D Y Chandrachud and Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra said the chief secretaries and finance secretaries of states which have complied with the top court's directions on payment of arrears relating to pay, pension and allowance to judicial officers need not appear before the court any more.

"We have (find) no pleasure in calling the chief and finance secretaries of the states, but consistently the counsels of states have been absent during the hearings," it said.

The court had summoned the top bureaucrats of Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Assam, Nagaland, Meghalaya, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Jharkhand, Kerala, Bihar, Goa, Haryana and Odisha to appear before it on Tuesday.

The direction came after senior lawyer K Parmeswar, who is assisting the court as amicus curiae (a friend of court), told the bench that despite several orders and extension of time, 18 states and union territories had not complied with the SNJPC recommendations fully.

The All India Judges Association (AIJA) is seeking implementation of welfare and other measures for former judges and judicial officers.