New Delhi, Jun 17 (IANS): The Delhi High Court has directed the CEO of the Delhi Waqf Board to appear before the court and provide an explanation for the failure to pay salaries to the board employees for several months, despite a court order directing the clearance of all outstanding dues.

The petitioner association and an individual employee had approached the court earlier in the year, claiming non-payment of salaries since October 2022.

Expressing concern over the situation, Justice Jyoti Singh noted that the employees had not received their salaries for nearly nine months, which demonstrated a distressing state of affairs.

The judge criticised the authorities for being insensitive to the employees' plight, as they were struggling to meet their basic needs.

The court observed a lack of regard for court orders and a lack of certainty regarding when salaries would be paid, with the excuse of insufficient funds.

The court then directed the CEO to attend the next hearing and clarify the alleged non-compliance with court orders and failure to fulfil the board's statutory obligation to pay salaries and allowances to the employees.

The court said that the respondents showed scant regard for its orders, as an assurance given during the previous hearing regarding the clearance of dues within two weeks had not been fulfilled.

The petitioners have alleged non-compliance with a court order issued on March 27, which directed the respondents, including the Delhi government and Delhi Waqf Board authorities, to clear the outstanding salaries within two weeks.

The plea underscored that timely payment of salaries was crucial for the employees' livelihood and argued that the denial of payment constituted a violation of the right to life guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution.