Bombay High Court Tells Mumbai Port Trust To Pay Interest To Staffer On His Delayed Salary For Not Linking To Aadhaar

The Bombay High Court has directed the Mumbai Port Trust to pay simple interest at the rate of 7.5% per annum to a staffer whose salary was delayed for nearly 30 months after he had refused to link his Aadhaar Card with the company payroll system.

While disposing of the petition filed by Mumbai Port Trust employee Ramesh Kurhade, Justice Akhil Kureshi and S J Kathawala stated that the Mumbai Port Trust shall pay simple interest by July 31, 2019.

Earlier, the Mumbai Port Trust staffer had approached the court seeking direction to the Mumbai Port trust to withdraw the circular on linking the company payroll to the Aadhar Card issued on December 23, 2015.

The circular had required the employees of the Mumbai Port Trust to submit their Aadhar Card Number for linking it to salary payment. Time was granted till February 15, 2016, failing which their salary from the next month would not be processed, as they were informed by the Mumbai Port Trust.

Mumbai Port Trust employee Kurhade had objected to this and took the stand that his employer cannot insist on linking his Aadhar Card number to the payroll system before releasing his salary.

After the company did not release his salary and he approached the court and he failed to get his salary when his petition was pending before the court. He had moved the court at a stage when the permissibility of linking of Aadhar Card with various schemes and payments was under challenge before the Supreme Court.

Later, the Supreme Court delivered its judgment in case of K S Puttaswamy (Aadhar) Vs Union of India.

The Mumbai Port Trust employee’s lawyer argued that since the salary was withheld without authority of law by his employer, the petitioner must be paid interest on delayed payment of salary.