Central Administrative Tribunal - Mumbai
Bhosale Shekhar Popatrao vs Western Railway on 4 July, 2025
1 OA No.348/2025
CENTRAL ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL,
MUMBAI BENCH, MUMBAI
ORIGINAL APPLICATION No.348/2025
Date of Decision : 04th July, 2025
CORAM : HON'BLE MR. SHRI KRISHNA, MEMBER (A)
HON'BLE MR. UMESH GAJANKUSH, MEMBER (J)
Bhosale Shekhar Popatrao,
Age 64 Yrs,
Retired Sr. Motor Man and R/at:Kalpataru
Paramount, Tower 1, Flat No.332,
33rd Flore, Near Balkum Fire Station,
Thane, Maharashtra - 400 608.
Thane, Maharashtra - 400 608.
Mob No:9372259533.
Email:[email protected] -Applicant
( By Advocate Shri Samir Singh )
Versus
1. Union of India (Through)
Milan Jackson
Digitally signed by Milan Jackson Alphanso
DN: C=IN, O=Personal, OID.2.5.4.65=0815a10efc18484c96f92d4cf96b158b, Phone=
30f7d919c844ed7f75e7bc56633df96108338768adae5582338f0d13d4f0f1dc,
PostalCode=401203, S=Maharashtra, SERIALNUMBER=
6b7c9269fe100118bd94c76380691e4802b189a40578bdd0fd757c8b8babf6f4, CN=
Milan Jackson Alphanso
The General Manager,
Alphanso
Reason: I am the author of this document
Western Railway, Mumbai Churchgate,
Location:
Date: 2025.07.08 11:16:47+05'30'
Foxit PDF Reader Version: 2024.4.0
Mumbai - 400 020.
2. Sr. Divisional Personnel Officer,
Mumbai Central, Western Railway,
DRM's Mumbai - 400 008.
3. Asst. Divisional, Finance Manager,
Mumbai Central, Western Railway,
DRM's Office, Mumbai - 400 008. - Respondents
ORAL ORDER
Per : Mr. Shri Krishna, Member (A)
The matter was listed under 'Orders' category. Notice was issued to the respondents 2 OA No.348/2025 on 17.04.2025. However, there is no appearance on behalf of the respondents. Since the issue involved is finally settled by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of The Director (Admn. And HR) KPTCL & Ors. Vs. C.P. Mundinamani & Ors., 2023 SCC Online SC 401 and in the case of Union of India & Anr. Versus M. Siddaraj, MA Diary No.2400/2024 in Civil Appeal No.3933/2023 dated 20.02.2025 and the same has been implemented by the DoPT by way of OM dated 20.05.2025, therefore, the matter has been taken up for final disposal.
2. The applicant has retired on superannuation on 30.06.2020. He is claiming notional increment which he claims was due to Digitally signed by Milan Jackson Alphanso Milan Jackson DN: C=IN, O=Personal, OID.2.5.4.65=0815a10efc18484c96f92d4cf96b158b, Phone= 30f7d919c844ed7f75e7bc56633df96108338768adae5582338f0d13d4f0f1dc, PostalCode=401203, S=Maharashtra, SERIALNUMBER= 6b7c9269fe100118bd94c76380691e4802b189a40578bdd0fd757c8b8babf6f4, CN= Milan Jackson Alphanso Alphanso Reason: I am the author of this document him on 01.07.2020. The applicant states that Location:
Date: 2025.07.08 11:16:47+05'30' Foxit PDF Reader Version: 2024.4.0 this Hon'ble Tribunal in OA No.226/2020(Dhruv Raj Thappa & Ors Vs. Union of India) by following the directions of the Hon'ble Apex Court issued on 11.04.2023 was pleased to grant notional increment to the applicant therein. The applicant further states that his case is identical, similarly placed and is entirely covered by the decisions of Hon'ble Apex Court 3 OA No.348/2025 and this Tribunal. He states that he be treated similarly and equally and is entitled to similar benefits as there cannot be any discrimination inter se, as laid down by the Hon'ble Apex Court in the case of Union of India & Ors. Vs. Munshi Ram, 2022 SCC Online SC 1493. Hence, this OA.
3. Learned counsel for the applicant has placed reliance on the decision of Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of Union of India & Ors. Vs. P. Ayyamperumal, Special Leave Petition (Civil) Diary No(s).22283/2018 dated 23.07.2018 whereby the order of Hon'ble High Court of Madras was upheld and SLP was dismissed. He has Digitally signed by Milan Jackson Alphanso Milan Jackson DN: C=IN, O=Personal, OID.2.5.4.65=0815a10efc18484c96f92d4cf96b158b, Phone= 30f7d919c844ed7f75e7bc56633df96108338768adae5582338f0d13d4f0f1dc, PostalCode=401203, S=Maharashtra, SERIALNUMBER= 6b7c9269fe100118bd94c76380691e4802b189a40578bdd0fd757c8b8babf6f4, CN= Milan Jackson Alphanso Alphanso also placed reliance on the decision of Hon'ble Reason: I am the author of this document Location:
Date: 2025.07.08 11:16:47+05'30' Foxit PDF Reader Version: 2024.4.0 Supreme Court in the case of The Director (Admn.
And HR) KPTCL & Ors. Vs. C.P. Mundinamani & Ors.
(supra) wherein the Hon'ble Apex Court has held that the employees retiring on 30th June/31st December are entitled for annual increment on the next date of their retirement i.e. 01st July/01st January.
4. Further, it is submitted that MA Diary 4 OA No.348/2025 No.2400/2024 in Civil Appeal No.3933/2023 in the case of Union of India & Anr. Versus M. Siddaraj has already decided on 20th February, 2025 by the Hon'ble Supreme Court.
5. We have considered the submission of learned counsel for the applicant.
6. We find that the Hon'ble Supreme Court on 06.09.2024, while hearing MA No.2400/2024 filed by Ministry of Railways along with several Intervention Applications tagged therewith, Hon'ble Supreme Court took note of the pending Petition (Dy. No.36418/20245) filed by Union of India seeking review of its order dated Digitally signed by Milan Jackson Alphanso Milan Jackson DN: C=IN, O=Personal, OID.2.5.4.65=0815a10efc18484c96f92d4cf96b158b, Phone= 30f7d919c844ed7f75e7bc56633df96108338768adae5582338f0d13d4f0f1dc, PostalCode=401203, S=Maharashtra, SERIALNUMBER= 11.04.2023 in CA No.2471/2023 in the matter. 6b7c9269fe100118bd94c76380691e4802b189a40578bdd0fd757c8b8babf6f4, CN= Milan Jackson Alphanso Alphanso Reason: I am the author of this document Location:
Date: 2025.07.08 11:16:47+05'30' Foxit PDF Reader Version: 2024.4.0 While observing that the issue raised in the applications requires consideration insofar as the date of applicability of the judgment dated 11.04.2023 in CA No.2471/2023 to third parties is concerned, Hon'ble Court issued following directions, by way of an interim order, to prevent any further litigation and confusion:
(a) The judgment dated 11.04.2023 will be given effect to in case of third parties from the date of the judgment, that is, 5 OA No.348/2025 the pension by taking into account one increment will be payable on and after 01.05.2023. Enhanced pension for the period prior to 30.04.2023 (erroneously mentioned as 31.04.2023 in the Order) will not be paid.
(b) For persons who have filed writ petitions and succeeded, the directions given in the said judgment will operate as res judicata, and accordingly, an enhanced pension by taking one increment would have to be paid.
(c) The direction in (b) will not apply, where the judgment has not attained finality, and cases where an appeal has been preferred, or if filed, is entertained by the appellate court.
(d) In case any retired employee has filed any application for intervention/impleadment in Civil Appeal No.3933/2023 or any other writ petition and a beneficial order has been passed, the enhanced pension by including one increment will be payable from the month in which the application Milan Jackson Digitally signed by Milan Jackson Alphanso DN: C=IN, O=Personal, OID.2.5.4.65=0815a10efc18484c96f92d4cf96b158b, Phone= 30f7d919c844ed7f75e7bc56633df96108338768adae5582338f0d13d4f0f1dc, PostalCode=401203, S=Maharashtra, SERIALNUMBER= for intervention/impleadment was filed." 6b7c9269fe100118bd94c76380691e4802b189a40578bdd0fd757c8b8babf6f4, CN= Milan Jackson Alphanso Alphanso Reason: I am the author of this document Location:
Date: 2025.07.08 11:16:47+05'30' Foxit PDF Reader Version: 2024.4.0 This interim order will continue till further orders of Hon'ble Apex Court. However, no person who has already received an enhanced pension including arrears, will be affected by the directions in (a), (c) and (d).
7. Pursuant to the above directions of Hon'ble Supreme Court, the Department of Personnel & Training, Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions has issued Office Memorandum No.19/116/2024-Pers.Pol.(Pay)(Pt) dated 14.10.2024 stating that the action may be 6 OA No.348/2025 taken to allow the increment on 1st July/1st January to the Central Government employees who retired/are retiring a day before it became due i.e. on 30th June/31st December and have rendered the requisite qualifying service as on the date of their superannuation with satisfactory work and good conduct for calculating the pension admissible to them. The grant of notional increment on 01st January/01st July shall be reckoned only for the purpose of calculating the pension admissible and not for the purpose of calculation of other pensionary benefits.
8. Thereafter, MA Diary No.2400/2024 in Digitally signed by Milan Jackson Alphanso Milan Jackson DN: C=IN, O=Personal, OID.2.5.4.65=0815a10efc18484c96f92d4cf96b158b, Phone= 30f7d919c844ed7f75e7bc56633df96108338768adae5582338f0d13d4f0f1dc, PostalCode=401203, S=Maharashtra, SERIALNUMBER= Civil Appeal No.3933/2023 in the case of Union 6b7c9269fe100118bd94c76380691e4802b189a40578bdd0fd757c8b8babf6f4, CN= Milan Jackson Alphanso Alphanso Reason: I am the author of this document Location:
Date: 2025.07.08 11:16:47+05'30' Foxit PDF Reader Version: 2024.4.0 of India & Anr. Versus M. Siddaraj was finally decided by the Hon'ble Supreme Court vide its order dated 20.02.2025. The observations of Hon'ble Supreme Court are as under:
".....We had passed the following interim order dated 06.09.2024, the operative portion of which reads as under:
"(a) The judgment dated 11.04.2023 will be given effect to in case of third parties from the date of the judgment, that is, the pension by taking into account one increment will be payable on and after 01.05.2023.
Enhanced pension for the period prior to 31.04.2023 7 OA No.348/2025 will not be paid.
(b) For persons who have filed writ petitions and succeeded, the directions given in the said judgment will operate as res judicata, and accordingly, an enhanced pension by taking one increment would have to be paid.
(c) The direction in (b) will not apply, where the judgment has not attained finality, and cases where an appeal has been preferred, or if filed, is entertained by the appellate court.
(d) In case any retired employee has filed any application for intervention/impleadment in Civil Appeal No. 3933/2023 or any other writ petition and a beneficial order has been passed, the enhanced pension by including one increment will be payable from the month in which the application for intervention/ impleadment was filed."
We are inclined to dispose of the present miscellaneous applications directing that Clauses (a), (b) and (c) of the order dated 06.09.2024 will be treated as final directions. We are, however, of the opinion that Clause (d) of the order Digitally signed by Milan Jackson Alphanso Milan Jackson DN: C=IN, O=Personal, OID.2.5.4.65=0815a10efc18484c96f92d4cf96b158b, Phone= 30f7d919c844ed7f75e7bc56633df96108338768adae5582338f0d13d4f0f1dc, PostalCode=401203, S=Maharashtra, SERIALNUMBER= 6b7c9269fe100118bd94c76380691e4802b189a40578bdd0fd757c8b8babf6f4, CN= Milan Jackson Alphanso Alphanso Reason: I am the author of this document Location:
Date: 2025.07.08 11:16:47+05'30' dated 06.09.2024 requires modification which shall now read as Foxit PDF Reader Version: 2024.4.0 under:
"(d) In case any retired employee filed an application for intervention/impleadment/writ petition/original application before the Central Administrative Tribunal/High Courts/this Court, the enhanced pension by including one increment will be payable for the period of three years prior to the month in which the application for intervention/ impleadment/ writ petition/ original application was filed."
Further, clause (d) will not apply to the retired government employee who filed a writ petition/original application or an application for intervention before the Central Administrative Tribunal/High Courts/this Court after the judgment in "Union of India & Anr. v. M. Siddaraj, as in such 8 OA No.348/2025 cases, clause (a) will apply.
Recording the aforesaid, the miscellaneous applications are disposed of.
We, further, clarify that in case any excess payment has already been made, including arrears, such amount paid will not be recovered.
It will be open to any person aggrieved by non- compliance with the directions and the clarification of this Court, in the present order, to approach the concerned authorities in the first instance and, if required, the Administrative Tribunal or High Court, as per law.
Pending applications including all intervention/impleadment applications shall stand disposed of in terms of this order.
Contempt Petition (Civil) Diary Nos. 38437/2023, 38438/2023, 11336/2024 and 20636/2024 In view of the order passed today in the connected matters, that is, M.A. Diary No. 2400 OF 2024 and other connected applications, the present contempt petitions will be Digitally signed by Milan Jackson Alphanso Milan Jackson DN: C=IN, O=Personal, OID.2.5.4.65=0815a10efc18484c96f92d4cf96b158b, Phone= 30f7d919c844ed7f75e7bc56633df96108338768adae5582338f0d13d4f0f1dc, PostalCode=401203, S=Maharashtra, SERIALNUMBER= 6b7c9269fe100118bd94c76380691e4802b189a40578bdd0fd757c8b8babf6f4, CN= Milan Jackson Alphanso Alphanso Reason: I am the author of this document Location:
Date: 2025.07.08 11:16:47+05'30' treated as disposed of with liberty to the petitioners to take Foxit PDF Reader Version: 2024.4.0 recourse to appropriate remedies, if required and necessary, as indicated supra. It goes without saying that the respondents shall examine the cases of the petitioners/ applicants in terms of the order passed today and comply with the same expeditiously.
Pending application(s), if any, shall stand disposed of."
9. Subsequently, the DoPT has issued another OM No.19/116/2024-Pers.Pol.(Pay) (Pt) dated 20.05.2025. It will be useful to extract 9 OA No.348/2025 herein below the relevant paras of the above OM:
2. Hon'ble Supreme Court, vide Order dated 18.12.2024, had dismissed the Review Petition (Dy No. 36418/2024) filed by this Department with the observation that there is no error apparent on the face of the record, warranting reconsideration of the order impugned.
3. Hon'ble Supreme Court has subsequently disposed of MA No.2400/2024 filed by M/o Railways and other petitions vide Order dated 20.02.2025 while issuing the following final directions in the matter:
a. The judgment dated 11.04.2023 will be given effect to in case of third parties from the date of the judgment, that is, the pension by taking into account one increment will be payable on and after 01.05.2023. Enhanced pension for the period prior to 30.04.2023 (erroneously mentioned as 31.04.2023 in the Order) will not be paid;
b. For persons who have filed writ petitions and succeeded, the directions given in the said judgment will operate as res judicata, and accordingly, an enhanced pension by taking one increment would have to be paid;
c. The direction in (b) will not apply, where the judgment has not attained finality, and cases where an appeal has been preferred, or if filed, is entertained by the appellate court;Digitally signed by Milan Jackson Alphanso
Milan Jackson DN: C=IN, O=Personal, OID.2.5.4.65=0815a10efc18484c96f92d4cf96b158b, Phone= 30f7d919c844ed7f75e7bc56633df96108338768adae5582338f0d13d4f0f1dc, PostalCode=401203, S=Maharashtra, SERIALNUMBER= 6b7c9269fe100118bd94c76380691e4802b189a40578bdd0fd757c8b8babf6f4, CN= Milan Jackson Alphanso Alphanso Reason: I am the author of this document Location:
d. In case any retired employee filed an application for Date: 2025.07.08 11:16:47+05'30' Foxit PDF Reader Version: 2024.4.0 intervention/ impleadment/ writ petition/ original application before the Central Administrative Tribunal/High Courts/Supreme Court, the enhanced pension by including one increment will be payable for the period of three years prior to the month in which the application for intervention/impleadment/writ petition/original application was filed.
4. The Hon'ble Supreme Court has decided that the direction referred at Para 3(d) above will not apply to the retired government employee who filed a writ petition/original application or an application for intervention before the Central Administrative Tribunal/High Courts/Supreme Court after the judgment in "Union of India & Anr. Vs M. Siddaraj", as in such cases directions referred in Para 3(a) will apply.10 OA No.348/2025
5. In addition, Hon'ble Supreme Court has clarified that in case any excess payment has already been made, including arrears, such amount paid will not be recovered. Court has decided that pending applications including all intervention/impleadment applications shall stand disposed of in terms of this order.
6. The matter has been examined in consultation with D/o Expenditure and D/o Legal Affairs. It is advised that in pursuance of the above referred Order dated 20.02.2025 of the Hon'ble Supreme Court, action may be taken to allow the increment on 1st July/1st January to the Central Government employees who retired/are retiring a day before it became due i.e. on 30th June / 31st December and have rendered the requisite qualifying service as on the date of their superannuation with satisfactory work and good conduct for calculating the pension admissible to them.
As specifically mentioned in the orders of the Hon'ble Supreme Court, grant of the notional increment on 1st January / 1st July shall be reckoned only for the purpose of calculating the pension admissible and not for the purpose of calculation of other pensionary Digitally signed by Milan Jackson Alphanso Milan Jackson DN: C=IN, O=Personal, OID.2.5.4.65=0815a10efc18484c96f92d4cf96b158b, Phone= 30f7d919c844ed7f75e7bc56633df96108338768adae5582338f0d13d4f0f1dc, PostalCode=401203, S=Maharashtra, SERIALNUMBER= 6b7c9269fe100118bd94c76380691e4802b189a40578bdd0fd757c8b8babf6f4, CN= Milan Jackson Alphanso Alphanso Reason: I am the author of this document Location:
Date: 2025.07.08 11:16:47+05'30' benefits.
Foxit PDF Reader Version: 2024.4.0
7. This issues with the concurrence of D/o Expenditure vide their Dy. No. 08-09/2019-E.IIIA(Vol.III) (4265134) dated 29.04.2025 and D/o Legal Affairs vide Computer Dy.
No. E-144903 dated 17.03.2025."
(Emphasis supplied)
10. Taking into consideration the aforesaid position, the OA is disposed of with a direction to the respondents to grant one notional increment to the applicant w.e.f 01.07.2023 11 OA No.348/2025 within a period of 90 days from the date of receipt of a certified copy of this order in terms of para 6 of the DoPT OM dated 20.05.2025 mentioned above. Pending MAs, if any, stand closed. No costs.
(Umesh Gajankush) (Shri Krishna)
Member (J) Member (A)
ma*
Digitally signed by Milan Jackson Alphanso
Milan Jackson DN: C=IN, O=Personal, OID.2.5.4.65=0815a10efc18484c96f92d4cf96b158b, Phone= 30f7d919c844ed7f75e7bc56633df96108338768adae5582338f0d13d4f0f1dc, PostalCode=401203, S=Maharashtra, SERIALNUMBER= 6b7c9269fe100118bd94c76380691e4802b189a40578bdd0fd757c8b8babf6f4, CN= Milan Jackson Alphanso Alphanso Reason: I am the author of this document Location:
Date: 2025.07.08 11:16:47+05'30' Foxit PDF Reader Version: 2024.4.0