Summary
The widow of a railway substitute who died in harness after 9 years 8 months of continuous service was held entitled to family pension: a substitute who completes the prescribed continuous service acquires temporary status, and under Rule 75 of the Railway Services (Pension) Rules, 1993 the family of a railway servant who dies after one year of continuous service gets family pension whether or not the post was regularised. The Court also awarded Rs 5,00,000 ex gratia under Article 142.
Issues
- Whether the widow of a temporary/substitute railway employee who died in harness short of ten years of service is entitled to family pension.
- Whether denial of family pension on the ground that the deceased's services had not been regularised was justified.
Provisions considered
- Rule 1515, Indian Railway Establishment Manual, Vol. ISubstitutes are to be afforded all rights and privileges admissible to temporary railway servants on completing four months' continuous service. The deceased, who had served over nine years, cleared medical examination and screening and been deputed to another post, had acquired temporary status for pension purposes. (¶¶ 6, 9, 11)
- Rule 18(3), Railway Services (Pension) Rules, 1993Extends family pension and death gratuity on the death in harness of a temporary railway servant at the scale admissible to temporary railway servants; applied with Rule 75 to compute the widow's family pension. (¶¶ 6, 13)
- Rule 75(2)(a), Railway Services (Pension) Rules, 1993Where a railway servant dies after one year of continuous service the family is entitled to family pension. The Court read the qualifying service for a temporary railway servant as one year of continuous service, accruing without discrimination between temporary and regularised posts. (¶¶ 6, 10, 13)
- Article 142, Constitution of IndiaInvoked to award Rs 5,00,000 ex gratia to the widow in view of her litigation since 2014 and the purpose of family pension. (¶ 14)
Held
- A substitute who has served continuously for well over the period prescribed in Rule 1515 of the Railway Establishment Manual, passed the medical examination and screening and been deputed to another post acquires the status of a temporary railway servant under the Railway Services (Pension) Rules, 1993, and his family is entitled to family pension as for any other temporary railway servant (following Prabhavati Devi v. Union of India). (¶ 9)
- Under Rule 75 of the Railway Services (Pension) Rules, 1993 the qualifying service for family pension is one year of continuous service, and the benefit accrues to the family of a servant who dies in harness whether the post was temporary or regularised; denial on the ground of non-regularisation or a shortfall of three months from ten years is contrary to the legislative intent of the Manual and the Pension Rules. (¶¶ 10, 11)
- Family pension and arrears are to be computed under Rule 75 read with Rule 18(3) of the Pension Rules, 1993; having regard to the widow's protracted litigation, ex gratia of Rs 5,00,000 was awarded under Article 142. (¶¶ 12, 13, 14)
Result
Appeal allowed; orders of the Patna High Court dated 12.05.2016 and of the Central Administrative Tribunal dated 23.12.2015 set aside; respondents to calculate and pay arrears of family pension and regular family pension, and Rs 5,00,000 ex gratia, within four months.