Patna: The Patna high court has ruled that the state govt’s policy of paying one month’s extra salary to all non-gazetted employees of the police organisation, effective from Aug 27, 2015, is equally applicable to prison warders in Bihar.A single bench of Justice Dr Anshuman, while allowing a writ petition filed by the Bihar Jail Men’s Association through its general secretary Amrendra Kumar, passed the verdict on Oct 12. The order became public on Monday.Petitioner’s counsel Mukund Mohan Jha submitted that on June 30, 2015, the state govt had issued a letter on paying one month’s extra salary to all non-gazetted employees, including sipahi and hawaldar, of the Bihar Police Organisation. The policy covered the fire service, government railway police, Bihar military police, vigilance police and district police force.The policy, recommended by the state pay commission, also brought prison warders within its ambit, but the benefit was made applicable to them only from Jan 28, 2019. The warders’ association challenged this, citing the principle of equal pay for equal work.Justice Anshuman found merit in the association’s claim and directed the state govt to pay prison warders one month’s extra salary from the same cut-off date applicable to other members of the police forces in Bihar.
