Kerala High Court
G.Mani vs North Paravur Municipality on 12 February, 2014
IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
PRESENT:
THE HONOURABLE SMT. JUSTICE P.V.ASHA
TUESDAY, THE 30TH DAY OF JANUARY 2018 / 10TH MAGHA, 1939
WP(C).No. 30234 of 2017
PETITIONER:
1 G.MANI, AGED 64 YEARS, S/O.GOVINDAN,
MANIKKAPARAMIL HOUSE, KIZHAKKEPRAM KARA,
NORTH PARAVUR
2 RAVI.A.M,AGED 64 YEARS, S/O.MADHAVAN.K.S.,
KULAKANDATHIL (KALATHIL) HOUSE,
PERUMPADANNA, NORTH PARAVUR
3 VIJAYAN .AR,AGED 62 YEARS, S/O.RAMAN,
ALUNGAL HOUSE, PERUMPADANNA, NORTH PARAVUR
4 RADHA P.A,AGED 64 YEARS, D/O.AYYAPPAN & W/O.RAJAN,
PULIKKEKKADAVIL HOUSE, KIZHAKKUMPURAM,
CHENDAMANGALAM, NORTH PARAVUR
5 SOFIABEEVI.M.K,AGED 62 YEARS, W/O.K.K.ABDU,
KUZHIKKADAVIL HOUSE, THEKKUMPURAM,
NOW RESIDING AT KARIMPADAM, NORTH PARAVUR
BY ADV.SRI.P.K.SAJEEV
RESPONDENT(S):
1. NORTH PARAVUR MUNICIPALITY, NORTH PARAVUR,
ERNAKULAM 683521,REPRESENTED BY ITS SECRETARY
2. THE SECRETARY, NORTH PARAVUR MUNICIPALITY,
NORTH PARAVUR, ERNAKULAM 683522
3. STATE OF THE KERALA,
REPRESENTED BY DIRECTOR OF URBAN AFFAIRS
UNDER THE LOCAL SELF GOVERNMENT,
DIRECTORATE OF URBAN AFFAIRS, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM 1
R1,R2 BY ADV. SRI.C.S.AJITH PRAKASH,SC
R3 BY SENIOR GOVT.PLEADER SRI. BIJOY CHANDRAN
THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING BEEN FINALLY HEARD
ON 30-01-2018, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING:
PBS
WP(C).No. 30234 of 2017 (D)
APPENDIX
PETITIONER(S)' EXHIBITS
EXHIBIT P1 TRUE COPY OF THE CALCULATION SHEET ALONG WITH
VERIFICATION REPORT DATED 12.02.2014 AND
CALCULATION FOR COMMUTATION OF PENSION ISSUED
FROM THE OFFICE OF THE SENIOR DEPUTY DIRECTOR,
LOCAL FUND AUDIT IN RESPECT OF THE 1ST
PETITIONER
EXHIBIT P2 TRUE COPY OF THE CALCULATION SHEET ALONG WITH
VERIFICATION REPORT DATED 09.07.2013 AND
CALCULATION FOR COMMUTATION OF PENSION
ISSUED FROM THE OFFICE OF THE SENIOR DEPUTY
DIRECTOR, LOCAL FUND AUDIT IN RESPECT OF THE 2ND
PETITIONER
EXHIBIT P3 TRUE COPY OF THE VERIFICATION REPORT DATED
17.12.2014 ALONG WITH CALCULATION FOR
COMMUTATION OF PENSION ISSUED FROM THE OFFICE
OF THE SENIOR DEPUTY DIRECTOR, FUND AUDIT IN
RESPECT OF THE 3RD PETITIONER
EXHIBIT P4 TRUE COPY OF THE CALCULATION SHEET ALONG WITH
VERIFICATION REPORT DATED 08.07.2014 AND
CALCULATION FOR COMMUTATION OF PENSION ISSUED
FROM THE OFFICE OF THE SENIOR DEPUTY DIRECTOR,
LOCAL FUND AUDIT IN RESPECT OF THE 4TH
PETITIONER
EXHIBIT P5 TRUE COPY OF THE VERIFICATION REPORT DATED
09.02.2016 ALONG WITH CALCULATION FOR
COMMUTATION OF PENSION ISSUED FROM THE OFFICE
OF THE SENIOR DEPUTY DIRECTOR, LOCAL FUND AUDIT
IN RESPECT OF THE 5TH PETITIONER
EXHIBIT P6 TRUE COPY OF THE LAWYER NOTICE DATED 29.06.2017
ISSUED TO THE 2ND RESPONDENT FOR AND ON BEHALF
OF PETITIONERS 1 TO 3
EXHIBIT P7 TRUE COPY OF THE POSTAL RECEIPT DATED 29.06.2017
EXHIBIT P8 TRUE COPY OF THE ACKNOWLEDGEMENT CARD
EXHIBIT P9 TRUE COPY OF THE LAWYER NOTICE DATED 30.06.2017
ISSUED TO THE 2ND RESPONDENT FOR AND ON BEHALF
OF 4TH PETITIONER
EXHIBIT P10 TRUE COPY OF THE POSTAL RECEIPT DATED 30.06.2017
EXHIBIT P11 TRUE COPY OF THE ACKNOWLEDGEMENT CARD
PBS
WP(C).No. 30234 of 2017 (D)
EXHIBIT P12 TRUE COPY OF THE LAWYER NOTIE DATED 13.07.2017
ISSUED TO THE 2ND RESPONDENT FOR AND ON BEHALF
OF 5TH PETITIONER
EXHIBIT P13 TRUE COPY OF THE POSTAL RECEIPT DATED 13.07.2017
EXHIBIT P14 TRUE COPY OF THE ACKNOWLEDGEMENT CARD
EXHIBIT P15 TRUE COPY OF THE REPLY NOTICE DATED 02.08.2017
ISSUED BY THE 2ND RESPONDENT
EXHIBIT P16 TRUE COPY OF THE INTERIM ORDER DATED 20.02.2017
IN WPC.NO. 29885/2015
EXHIBIT P17 TRUE COPY OF THE INTERIM ORDER DATED 18.08.2017
IN O.A.(EKM) 1725/2017 ON THE FILES OF KERALA
ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM (CAMP
SITTING,ERNAKULAM)
RESPONDENT'S EXHIBIT NIL
/TRUE COPY/
PA TO JUDGE
PBS
P.V.ASHA J.
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W.P.(C).No.30234 of 2017
-------------------------------------
Dated this the 30th day of January, 2018
J U D G M E N T
Petitioners retired from service on 31.07.2013, 30.04.2013, 30.11.2014, 31.08.2013 and 30.11.2015 respectively, while working as sanitation workers under the first respondent-Corporation. On the basis of interim order passed on 26.10.2017, petitioners have received the DCRG in January, 2018 after a period of about 5 years in the case of petitioners 1, 2 and 4 and after a period of about 4 years and 3 years respectively in case of petitioners 3 and 5. Petitioners submit that other than monthly pension nothing was paid by the Municipality. Now that though the DCRG is paid, petitioners are yet to receive the commuted value of pension, arrears of DA etc. It is stated that the 3rd petitioner has not received the W.P.(C).No.30234 of 2017 2 increment for the period from 2006 to 2014 and the 4th petitioner has not received arrears of pay from 2009 onwards. It is also stated that 5 th petitioner has not received the benefit of earned leave surrender so far.
2. Second respondent has filed a counter affidavit, stating that the Municipality is facing serious financial crisis. According to them, the pensionary benefits to regular employees of Municipality is to be remitted from the Central Pension Account of the Director of Municipality and the Municipality has to receive a sum of Rs.2,96,76,381/- as arrears towards the allotment of pension. Therefore, it is stated that the pensionary benefits including that of the regular employees are being disbursed from the Municipality's own fund and because of this Municipality is facing acute financial problem.
W.P.(C).No.30234 of 20173
3. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioner and the learned Standing Counsel.
4. The payment of pension and DCRG to the contingent employees in Municipalities is governed by the Municipal Contingent Employees (Death cum Retirement Benefit) Rules, 1977. Those rules provide that each Municipality has to maintain a separate fund for payment of retirement benefits to the contingent employees to which remittance shall be made for each employees every month. It also provides that this fund shall not be appropriated for any other purpose. In case such a fund was maintained by the Municipality and not appropriated for any other purposes, there would not have been any delay in making the payment. Therefore, the reasons stated by the Municipality in the counter affidavit is only to be discarded. Petitioners had been toiling all these years with the legitimate W.P.(C).No.30234 of 2017 4 expectation that their retirement benefits would be disbursed on the very next month of their retirement in 2013, 2014 and 2015 respectively. It is settled law that pension and pensionary benefits are not bounties to be disbursed at the will and pleasure of the employer but valuable property in the hands of the pensioner. That cannot be denied or delayed under the guise of financial stringency. The respondent Municipality has illegally retained the retirement benefits due to the petitioners, which were payable immediately after their retirement. Therefore petitioners are liable to be compensated by payment of interest.
In the above circumstance, there shall be a direction to the first respondent to make the entire payment due to the petitioners as claimed by them, within a period of 'two months' from the date of receipt of a copy of the judgment.
W.P.(C).No.30234 of 20175
Petitioners shall also be paid interest at the rate of 6% per annum for the period from 01.01.2013, 01.07.2013, 01.01.2015, 01.12.2013 and 01.02.2015 respectively till date of payment. The entire payment shall be paid within a period of 'three months' from the date of receipt of a copy of the judgment.
Sd/-
P.V.ASHA, JUDGE.
AS