Het Ram vs Himachal Pradesh Road Transport Corporation

Justice Kurian Joseph, C.J.—Appellant is the writ petitioner. Writ petition was filed, aggrieved by the objection, raised by the Accountant General in the matter of fixation of pension. On the basis of objection raised by the Accountant General, the employer, namely Himachal Road Transport Corporation also declined to refix the pension. The undisputed and simple facts are that the writ petitioner retired from service on 31.1.1998. After the retirement, pay of the writ petitioner was revised retrospectively w.e.f. 1.1.1986. Accordingly, his pay was re-fixed. On the basis of re-fixation of pay based on revised pay-scale, the petitioner made a request for re-fixation of pension. The objection was raised by the Accountant General to the effect that since pay fixation was given only notionally and since the petitioner retired without actually getting the monetary benefits on account of pay fixation, the pension cannot be refixed. Annexure A-11 is the order. The Accountant General has attempted to place reliance on interpretation of Rule 33 of CCS (Pension) Rules, which reads as follows:

33-Emoluments

The expression ''emoluments'' means basic pay as defined in Rule 9(21)(a)(i) of the Fundamental Rules which a Government servant was receiving immediately before his retirement or on the date of his death and will also include non-practising allowance granted to medical officer in lieu of private practice.

Pension is fixed on the basis of emoluments received by an incumbent immediately before his retirement. In other words, the last drawn pay. According to the Accountant General, the last drawn pay should be the actual pay drawn by an incumbent while in service and only on the basis of pay thus drawn, the pension can be refixed. We find it difficult to digest the contention. Once the pay of an incumbent, in service, has been refixed, it is irrelevant and immaterial as to whether actual benefit flowing from the fixation has been received or not. In other words, pension is to be calculated not on the basis of the amount actually received by an incumbent in the last month of his service, but on the basis of the pay, as fixed for the last month of the service. That alone is the interpretation, purposive, proper and reasonable, in the matter of fixation of pension. Accordingly, the impugned judgment is set aside. The writ petition is allowed and Annexures A-11 and A-13 are quashed. There will be a direction to the respondents to refix the pension of the appellant-writ petitioner on the basis of the pay fixed for the last month in service. Arrears on account of re-fixation, as above, shall be disbursed to the appellant-writ petitioner within a period of three months.