Supreme Court raps Bengal Govt over DA dues, says ‘behaving like old moneylenders’

The Supreme Court on Wednesday criticised the West Bengal government for not disbursing dearness allowance (DA) to state employees. A bench of Justices Sanjay Karol and P.K. Mishra said the state was behaving like old-time moneylenders, collecting money and spending it elsewhere, instead of clearing employee dues. The observation came during the ongoing hearing on the DA matter.

The case, which began its detailed hearing on Tuesday, centres around whether DA is a legal or fundamental right for government employees. On Tuesday, senior advocate Kapil Sibal represented the West Bengal government and argued that DA is not a fundamental right. He stated that the employees’ claim to DA does not carry constitutional protection.

Justice Sanjay Karol responded by telling the state counsel, “You may give as much DA as you wish. But please give it. Tell your client.” The bench also questioned the government’s prolonged delay in clearing pending DA amounts. During Wednesday’s hearing, the counsel representing employees informed the court that no DA was paid for two periods: 2006 to 2008 and 2019 to 2021.

In response, the state government stated that it does not currently have the funds available to release the DA. It explained that the state would have to borrow money from the Reserve Bank of India, which would assess its borrowing capacity before issuing a loan. After receiving the loan, the state would then need to pass an appropriation bill in the Assembly before any amount can be disbursed.

The hearing is part of a larger case that challenges the state’s policy and financial approach to employee compensation. The Supreme Court is examining the arguments from both sides to decide whether the non-payment of DA violates the rights of government employees under existing laws. The matter remains under consideration.