PANJIM: The High Court of Bombay at Goa has held that employees, who were either on contractual or daily wages before introducing the new pension system would be entitled for benefit under the old pension scheme, even though their formal appointment or regularisation was before the new pension scheme came into force.
The Court decision is expected to help many government employees to avail benefit under the old pension scheme.
The High Court had admitted a letter written by the retired worker Sushila Kallimani as suo motu writ petition. Kallimani who retired from her service as a sweeper of Sankhali Municipal Council in December 2020 after working for nearly 36 years.
At her retirement, the State authorities paid her a total amount of Rs 6,12,386 in full and final settlement of her retiral dues and benefits. Of this, 50 per cent (Rs 3,06,193) was her own contribution under the new pension scheme, which was applied to her case in defiance of several judicial precedents by the municipality and the State authorities. Thus after putting in 36 years of unblemished service as a sweeper, Kallimani received Rs 3,06,193 to fend for herself against the vagaries of old age and failing health even as she pleaded with the authorities for some relief in her old age.
After all her pleas fell on deaf ears, she addressed a letter dated May 1, 2022 to the High Court explaining her plight and the Court treated the letter as a suo motu writ petition and issued notices to both, the Sankhali municipal council and the State authorities.
The municipal counsel S D Padiyarand the Advocate General Devidas Pangam opposed the grant of relief even as they offered full sympathy for her plight. They felt that her case could not be covered under the old pension scheme that might have entitled her to a monthly pension and otherbenefits as against paltry amount of Rs 3,06,193 in full and final settlement of her retiral benefits.
The division bench comprising Justices Mahesh Sonak and B P Deshpande court took note of four submissions made by Adv Gosavi in support of granting Kallimani the benefits of pension and other benefits under the old pension scheme, which wasapplicable to her.
The Court has directed the Sankhali Municipal Council to pay the petitioner pension under the old pension scheme effective from the date of retirement i.e. December 31, 2020 and by adjusting deductions from the amount paid to her under the new pension scheme not exceeding 25 per cent of the monthly pension amount due and payable to her, within two months from the date of order.
Appreciating the legal research and presentation of Adv Abhijit Gosavi, who was appointed a amicus curie to assist the woman, the Court asked the municipal council to pay Rs 25,000 to him. This amount is not in substitution for the gratitude that this Court expresses to Adv Gosavi for the assistance rendered in the matter, the Court mentioned.
