Patna High Court
CWJC/12389/2026 of Devmuni Paswan Vs The State of Bihar on 17 August 2026
COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA Civil Writ Jurisdiction Case No.12389 of 2026 ====================================================== Devmuni Paswan S/o Murali Paswan, R/o Village- Alipur, P.S.-Sonhan, District-Kaimur. ... ... Petitioner/s Versus 1. The State of Bihar through the Additional Chief
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
Civil Writ Jurisdiction Case No.12389 of 2026
======================================================
Devmuni Paswan S/o Murali Paswan, R/o Village- Alipur, P.S.-Sonhan, District-Kaimur.
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
1.
The State of Bihar through the Additional Chief Secretary, Department of Health, Govt. of Bihar, Patna.
2.
The Director-in-Chief, Health Services, Govt. of Bihar, Patna.
3.
The Divisional Commissioner, Patna Division, Patna.
4.
Executive Director, State Health Society, Bihar, Patna.
5.
The Collector-cum-President, District Health Society, Kaimur (Bhabhua).
6.
The Civil Surgeon-cum-Secretary, District Health Society, Kaimur, Bhabhua.
7.
The Civil Surgeon-cum-Chief Medical Officer, Kaimur, Bhabhua.
... ... Respondent/s
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s
:
Mr. Ram Nath Singh Yadav, Adv.
For the State
:
Mr. Sanjay Kumar, AC to GP-17
For the SHS
:
Mr. K.K. Sinha, Adv.
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE HARISH KUMAR
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ORAL ORDER
17-08-2026 Heard learned Advocates appearing for the respective parties.
2. The petitioner has invoked the writ jurisdiction of this Court seeking issuance of a writ, in the nature of mandamus, directing the respondents to ensure payment of the arrears of honorarium payable to him for the period from 01.06.2019 to 30.06.2024 @ Rs.18,000/- per month, in terms of Letter No.9534 dated 17.07.2019 issued by the General Administration Department, Government of Bihar. The petitioner has further prayed for payment of arrears of honorarium for the period from 01.07.2024 to 31.03.2025 @ Rs.22,000/- per month, in terms of Letter No.10378 dated 04.07.2024. A further prayer has been made for payment of the outstanding honorarium amounting to Rs.65,000/- for the period from July, 2013 to March, 2016.
3. It is the case of the petitioner that he was duly appointed on contractual basis as a Peon vide Memo dated 29.11.2006 issued by respondent no.6 and has continuously discharged his duties to the satisfaction of the authorities. However, despite having rendered his continuous services, the petitioner has not been paid the due honorarium payable to him in accordance with the revised rates prescribed by the competent authority, giving rise to the present writ petition.
4. It has further been submitted on behalf of the petitioner that his claim was duly considered by the competent authority and respondent no.7, vide Letter No.2733 dated 24.09.2025, directed the Deputy Superintendent of the Hospital, Kaimur, to ensure payment of honorarium to the appointees engaged on contractual basis at the revised rates. It is, however, contended that despite the aforesaid direction, the admissible honorarium payable to the petitioner has not been released.
5. Learned Advocate appearing for the State Health Society as well as learned Advocate appearing for the State seek a short adjournment to apprise this Court of the present status of the petitioner's claim and the steps taken by the concerned authorities in that regard.
6. Having considered the submissions advanced on behalf of the respective parties and having regard to the nature of the grievance raised in the present writ petition, which essentially pertains to the payment of arrears of honorarium for the services admittedly rendered by the petitioner, this Court deems it appropriate to dispose of the present writ petition with a direction to respondent no.6 to consider and decide the claim of the petitioner in accordance with law and in the light of the principles laid down by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Man Singh v. State of Uttar Pradesh through Secretary & Ors. [2022 SCC OnLine SC 726], wherein the Hon'ble Supreme Court has, inter alia, recognized the principle that the State or its instrumentalities cannot extract services from an employee and thereafter deny payment for the services actually rendered. The mere fact that an appointment may be irregular or contractual, by itself, would not justify withholding remuneration for the period during which the services were actually rendered, subject, of course, to the applicable statutory and administrative provisions.
7. In view of the aforesaid facts and circumstances, respondent no.6 is directed to consider the claim of the petitioner, including his claim for the arrears of honorarium for the aforesaid periods, and to take an appropriate and reasoned decision thereon, preferably within a period of eight weeks from the date of receipt/production of a copy of this order.
8. It is made clear that, in the event the petitioner's claim is found to be otherwise admissible and is supported by the applicable rules, Government instructions and administrative orders, the consequential benefits, including payment of the admissible arrears of honorarium, shall be released to him within a reasonable period thereafter, subject to there being no legal or other administrative impediment.
9. The writ petition stands disposed of accordingly.
rohit/- (Harish Kumar, J) U