Punjab Chief Secretary fined Rs 1 lakh as High Court loses patience over unpaid DA arrears
PTC Web Desk: The Punjab and Haryana High Court has come down hard on the Punjab Government for dragging its feet on pending Dearness Allowance (DA) and arrears. The court imposed a cost of Rs 1 lakh over non-compliance with its earlier orders and has told the Chief Secretary to appear in person at the next hearing.
The court was unhappy that its directions had not been followed and that the state had not filed its reply on time. For thousands of employees waiting on their dues, the order comes as a much-needed relief.
At the next hearing on November 3, the Chief Secretary must be present in the court. He will have to file a reply listing the steps taken so far to comply with the earlier orders and give a clear timeline for implementing them in full.
The dispute covers pending DA and arrears for the period from January 1, 2016, to June 30, 2021, to be paid as a lump sum. The High Court had earlier ordered the government to pay within a fixed period. When that did not happen, the employees filed a contempt petition.
During the hearing on that petition, the bench objected strongly to the government’s inaction. It also made a pointed observation: administrative delay cannot be a reason to keep employees’ rightful dues on hold indefinitely. A detailed written order will follow. Employee unions have welcomed the decision and called it a win for unity and justice.
Case timeline
April 8, 2026: The High Court began hearing employees’ petitions challenging the state’s policy of holding back DA increases in line with the central pattern.
August 3, 2026: A division bench of Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra and Justice Rohit Kapoor rejected the government’s plea of financial stress. It ordered dues of about 8 lakh employees and pensioners to be cleared within 15 days. The court also barred the government from issuing large-scale advertisements until the dues were paid.
August 31, 2026: The deadline for the Chief Secretary to file a compliance affidavit passed. No payment was made.
September 1, 2026: The state moved the Supreme Court with a Special Leave Petition (SLP).
September 10, 2026: The High Court asked for a fresh response on non-compliance. The state said the matter was already before the Supreme Court. The High Court gave it 10 days to fix defects in that appeal.
October 1, 2026: The Advocate General and the Chief Secretary said the defects had been removed and the appeal re-filed.
October 6, 2026: A status report from the Supreme Court registry showed the appeal was still defective and not ready to be listed. The High Court treated this as misleading the court. It issued a show-cause notice for criminal contempt to Chief Secretary KAP Sinha and asked him to appear on October 9.
October 9, 2026: The Chief Secretary appeared in person and his counsel offered an unconditional apology. The Chief Justice’s bench called the state’s conduct deeply distressing, declined to accept the apology and sent the matter to the roster division bench that hears criminal contempt cases.
All eyes are now on November 3, when the Chief Secretary must explain what the government has done and when employees can expect their money.
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- PTC NEWS
