- DIMAPUR — The
Supreme Court of India on Tuesday dismissed a special leave petition filed by
the State of Nagaland, effectively upholding the Gauhati High Court’s 2022
judgment that granted equal pay to teachers appointed under the Rashtriya
Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA).
- A bench comprising Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice K
Vinod Chandran declined to interfere with the earlier ruling of the Gauhati High
Court, Kohima Bench, delivered on March 16, 2022, which had directed the
Nagaland Government to extend regular pay scales to RMSA teachers in parity
with their counterparts. The interim relief that had paused implementation of
the High Court’s order now also stands vacated.
Also read: Combined Technical Association of Nagaland seeks termination of casual appointee in LM&CP department
- Case background
- The case originated from a long-standing grievance by 435
RMSA teachers who were recruited between 2015 and 2016 on fixed salaries
despite the creation of their posts being sanctioned with a regular pay band of
INR 9,300–34,800 with a grade pay of INR 4,200 per month.
- Following a restructuring in 2018 that merged various
educational schemes into Samagra Shiksha, the State government had directed
these teachers to accept reduced salaries, failing which they faced administrative
action. The teachers contested this move and filed a writ petition at the
Kohima Bench of the Gauhati High Court.
- In its 2022 judgment, the High Court observed that the
petitioners were performing the same duties as other teachers under SSA and
RMSA who were being paid higher wages and had been absorbed into State cadre
positions. It ruled that the petitioners were “equally placed in all respects”
and hence, entitled to equal pay for equal work, a principle grounded in
Articles 14 and 39 of the Indian Constitution.
- The State of Nagaland subsequently challenged this ruling in
the Supreme Court.
