Here's a breakdown of a recent Delhi High Court decision where a salary payback order was overturned. The court found that the order went against several basic rules and past decisions.
On December 16, 2025, the Delhi High Court, with Justices C. Hari Shankar and Om Prakash Shukla, looked into a petition by P Alpa Ben and others. They were challenging an order from August 9, 2024, which demanded that they pay back extra salary they received from 2015 to 2018.
P Alpa Ben and the others argued that they were not given any warning before the order was issued, which goes against a Supreme Court decision in Bhagwan Shukla v. Union of India. The court agreed, saying that issuing such an order without warning was not right.
"The order has been issued without any warning to the petitioner and, therefore, goes against the Supreme Court's decision."
The payback order also went against the Supreme Court's rules in State of Punjab v. Rafiq Masih. These rules say that payback is not allowed in certain cases, such as:
The court noted that these rules applied to P Alpa Ben and the others, making the payback order not allowed.
"Payback from the employees, when the extra money has been given for more than five years, before the payback order is issued."
The court canceled the August 9, 2024 order. It directed that any money already taken back should be returned to P Alpa Ben and the others within four weeks, with a 12% yearly interest if delayed.
"The challenged order dated 9 August 2024 is canceled and set aside."
The court's decision highlights the need to follow proper procedures and respect employees' rights. It shows that payback orders must follow set rules and previous decisions.
