SC defers hearing on compliance report on DA arrears case involving Bengal government
Telegraph | 16 April 2026
The Supreme Court on Wednesday adjourned till May 6 the hearing on the compliance of its February 5 judgment by which it had ordered the Mamata Banerjee government to pay the first tranche of DA arrears of government staff from 2008 to 2019 by March 31.
The February 5 verdict had said the DA dues shall be cleared in accordance with the Fifth Pay Commission report.
It had listed the matter for April 15 to examine the compliance report by the Bengal government. However, when the matter came up for hearing before the bench of Justice Sanjay Karol and Justice Prashant Kumar Mishra, the bench noted that the status report was not placed before the court.
Senior advocates Kapil Sibal and Shyam Divan, who appeared for the Bengal government, informed the bench that the state was determined to implement the court’s order fully. Although some of the lawyers representing the employees complained that they had not been paid the arrears in terms of the order passed by the top court, Divan told the bench that the State had already disbursed over ₹1,700 crore towards payment of the DA arrears in instalments.
Without going into the merits of the respective claims, the bench said it would hear the matter again on May 6.
On February 5, the bench had directed the Bengal government to disburse the DA arrears from 2008 to 2019 by March 31, 2006, in accordance with the Fifth Pay Commission report, as it rejected the State’s plea that implementation of the same would financially cripple the exchequer.
The Supreme Court had passed the directive while upholding the 2022 judgment of Calcutta High Court, which directed the Trinamool Congress government to implement the 5th pay commission report and initiated contempt action against the state for failing to implement the directive, following which the Mamata government had filed the present appeal.
However, in a partial relief to the Bengal government, the top court had ruled that employees have no right to claim payment of DA twice a year and the same was subject to the discretion of the government and further held that State employees cannot seek parity in DA with Central government employees.
“The time period in question is 2008 to 2019 that is approximately a period of eleven years. Each month that the requisite DA was not paid, is a wrong committed against the respondents. Certainly, when that is the case ‘fiscal policy’ cannot grant a cloak of protection to the appellant - State. Should such an argument be accepted, the very concept of judicial review would be shaken.
No one denies that it is within the State’s power to make decisions regarding payments to its employees but once such a decision has been made, it cannot deviate therefrom. It is this deviation which is a subject matter of judicial review.
To receive dearness allowance is a legally enforceable right that has accrued in favour of the respondents-employees of the State of West Bengal,” the Supreme Court had said in the judgment.