As the Punjab Government is preparing to challenge the Punjab and Haryana High Court directive to clear all pending Dearness Allowance (DA) dues, and employee unions have issued a fresh ultimatum and planned a mass leave for September 8, a Ludhiana-based citizens’ group has urged the Punjab Government not to load the interest liability arising from delayed payment of Dearness Allowance (DA) arrears on the public exchequer.In a representation to the the AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal, CM Bhagwant Mann and the chief Secretary, the Public Action Committee (PAC) has pointed out that the additional burden was the result of administrative delay.The committee has sought that responsibility for the avoidable interest be fixed on the officials concerned.The group recalled that employees, including those of PSPCL, had approached the Punjab and Haryana High Court seeking release of pending DA arrears. The Single Bench had directed the state government to clear the dues by June 30, 2026. The government challenged the order, but the Division Bench dismissed the appeal on August 17 and directed payment of the arrears along with interest at 6 per cent per annum till the date of actual payment.Despite the clear judicial directions, the arrears remain unpaid, the representation stated. As a result, an additional financial liability in the form of interest is now set to fall on the state.“The issue assumes considerable public importance because any interest payable as a consequence of administrative delay would ultimately be borne from the public exchequer and, therefore, from public money,” the PAC said. It emphasised that ordinary taxpayers, who discharge their own statutory liabilities on time, should not be made to pay for the state’s delayed discharge of an admitted obligation.The committee clarified that it was not questioning the legitimate entitlement of employees and pensioners to the DA arrears or the interest ordered by the High Court. Its limited demand, it said, was that the government examine the circumstances of the delay, fix accountability in accordance with law and service rules, and ensure that no avoidable financial burden is caused to the state while fully complying with the court’s directions.It also requested the government to put in place a mechanism for timely release of DA and other statutory dues in future so that similar interest liabilities do not arise again.The representation has been signed by Er Kapil Dev, Er Jaskirat Singh, Kuldeep Singh Khaira and Dr Amandeep Singh Bains on behalf of the Public Action Committee.