The directive came during a hearing on two applications filed by Punjab government employees and pensioners, who alleged non-compliance with the court’s August 3 judgment

The Punjab and Haryana high court on Tuesday directed Punjab chief secretary KAP Sinha to explain why criminal contempt proceedings should not be initiated against him for making a “prima facie false statement” in the ongoing dearness allowance (DA) case.

A bench, comprising chief justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra and justice Rohit Kapoor, passed the order in Sinha’s presence. The action followed revelations that the Punjab government’s appeal remains lodged with defects before the Supreme Court, directly contradicting Sinha’s Monday statement that a fresh appeal had been filed after curing all defects.

The directive came during a hearing on two applications filed by Punjab government employees and pensioners, who alleged non-compliance with the court’s August 3 judgment.

In that ruling, the court ordered the state to release all pending DA installments to employees and pensioners on a par with central government rates paid to All India Services (IAS/IPS/IFS) officers within a fortnight. The court also barred the state from indulging in “unproductive expenditures”, such as large-scale print or social media ad campaigns, until all dues were settled, directing the chief secretary to file a compliance affidavit by August 31.

The government failed to meet the deadline and filed an appeal in the Supreme Court on...

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