A division bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad, dealing with a bunch of pleas filed in 2020 seeking payment of salaries to various employees of the civic body, said despite assuring them of timely payments, the employees are not being paid, which is unfortunate.

Even retired employees have moved pleas seeking the release of their pensions.

On December 21, last year, the city government and MCD had together promised that all dues will be cleared in four weeks.

Noting the above, the bench directed the officials: “It is also strange that the pensioners are not receiving the pensions and they are hand to mouth. This court is left with no choice but to direct the personal appearance of the Commissioner of MCD, Finance Secretary and Secretary of Urban Development of the GNCTD.”

The court listed the matter for the next hearing on February 2.

Last year, the court pulled up East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC) for not paying salaries to its primary school teachers. The same bench had asked it to make every endeavour to make salaries to its teachers.

Appearing for petitioners, advocate Ashok Agarwal had submitted that primary school teachers are not getting salaries and they are facing financial problems.

The MCD was previously divided into North, South, and East Municipal Corporations.