Central Administrative Tribunal - Lucknow
Smt Sadapiyari vs Ordnance Clothing Factory on 22 August, 2025
CAT, Lucknow Bench OA No. 332/00240 of 2024 Smt. Sadapiyari Vs UOI &Ors.
CENTRAL ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL
LUCKNOW BENCH LUCKNOW
Original Application No.332/00240/2024
Dated, this 22nd day of August, 2025
Hon'ble Mr. Pankaj Kumar, Member-Administrative
Smt. Sadapiyari aged about 71 years widow of late Heera Lal, R/o
Village-Dhinni, Tusaura Post-Myoni, District-Hardoi.
.... Applicant
By Advocate: Ms. Bhavana Gupta
VERSUS
1. Union of India, through its General Manager/Secretary, Ministry of
Defence, Address-136, South Block, New Delhi.
2. Ordinance Clothing Factory Shahjahanpur through its Senior
General Manager.
3. Office of the Principal Controller of Defence Accounts (Pension),
Allahabad.
.... Respondents
By Advocate: Smt. Prayagmati Gupta.
ORDER (ORAL)
Per Hon'ble Mr. Pankaj Kumar, Member-Administrative In this case relating to family pension,the applicant has sought following reliefs:
"(i) Quash/set aside the impugned order dated 19.02.2024 passed by Opposite Party No. 2 contained in Annexure No. 1 respectively to this Original Application and provide all consequential benefits to the applicant.
(ii) To direct the opposite parties to pay all post retirement benefits to the applicant like family pension and arrears of the family pension along with interest @ 18% per annum since due date till the date of actual payment.
(iii) To passany other order or direction which this Hon'ble Tribunal may deem just and proper in the above circumstances in favour of the petitioner in the interest of justice.
(iv) Award the cost of the Original Application."Page 1 of 6
CAT, Lucknow Bench OA No. 332/00240 of 2024 Smt. Sadapiyari Vs UOI &Ors.
2. The facts of the case are that the applicant's husband, Heera Lal, retired from the post of Tailor on 31.05.1997 and was in receipt of pension when he died on 02.06.2022. The applicant's claim to family pension was declined by the respondents on the ground that her dates of birth as mentioned in her PAN Card and Aadhaar Card were different from the applicant's date of birth available in the deceased employee's service records. Aggrieved, the applicant has preferred this OA.
3. The applicant states that she is the legally wedded wife of late Heera Lal, she is illiterate and has no other source of sustenance and that family pension cannot be withheld by the respondents on the ground of discrepancy in the date of birth in terms of rule 54 of the Central Civil Services (Pension) Rules, 1972.
4. Per contra, the respondents state that the date of birth mentioned by Late Heera Lal in the nomination form during his service is 01.03.1949, but in the PAN Card submitted by the applicant the date of birth is 01.01.1959 and in the Aadhaar Card it is 22.08.1952. It is contended that due to the discrepancy in the date of birth, it has not been possible to consider the applicant's claim for family pension.
5. Heard both the parties.
6.1 It is noted that the present controversy can be resolved in term of the office memorandum (OM, hereafter) no. 1/23/2012-P & PW (E) dated 13.09.2012 issued by the Department of Pension & Pensioners' Welfare (DoP & PW, hereafter) which is extracted below:
"Sub: Change in date of birth/age of family pensioners - regarding.
1. In accordance with the instructions issued vide this Department's OM No. 38/37/08-P&PW (A) dated 21.05.2009, 11.08.2009, 25.06.2010, & 28.09.2010 and OM No. 1/19/11-P&PW (E) dated 03.08.2011 additional pension/family pension to old pensioners/family pensioners is allowed on the basis of date of birth/age recorded in the Pension Payment Order (PPO) or other office records. Only in case the details regarding date of birth/age are not available in the PPO/office records, additional Page 2 of 6 CAT, Lucknow Bench OA No. 332/00240 of 2024 Smt. Sadapiyari Vs UOI &Ors.
pension/family pension to old pensioners/family pensioners has been allowed on the basis of certain documents i.e. PAN Card, matriculation certificate. Passport, CGHS Card, Driving Licence, Voter's ID Card and Aadhaar Number issued by UIDAI.
2. During service and at the time of retirement, a Government servant is required to give details of his family, including date of birth in its members, in Form 3. Date of birth/age of the members of family mentioned by the Government servant in Form 3 was not required to be verified by the Head of Office. It is felt that in some case, the date of birth/age of a family pensioner, as recorded in the PPO/office records might be incorrect.
3. Some representations have been received in this Department regarding the hardship being caused to old family pensioners in getting the additional pension on account of incorrect recording of the date of birth/age in the PPO. They have been requesting for allowing the change of date of birth in the PPO on the basis of the documents prescribed in the various OMs mentioned in Para 1 above.
4. The matter has been considered in this Department in consultation with the Ministry of Finance, Department of Expenditure and the following decisions have been made:
(i) Since the date of birth of the Government servant is recorded in the PPO on the basis of the service records and the date of superannuation etc. is also determined on the basis of this date of birth, there is no question of allowing change in the date of birth of the retired/deceased pensioner in the PPO.
(ii) The request for change of date of birth/age of the family pensioner (parents and spouse) in the PPO may be submitted by a pensioner/family pensioner to the Head of the Department of the organization where the Government servant had last served along with at least one of the documents mentioned in Para 1 above and a declaration on a non-judicial stamp paper regarding the correct date of birth of the family pensioner.
The Head of the Department may allow the change in the date of birth of the family pensioner if he is satisfied that the conditions indicated in this Department's OMNo.38/37/08-P&PW (A)dated 21.05.2009 have been fulfilled and that a bona-fide mistake has been made in recording the date of birth in the PPO.
(iii) No other document will be accepted for allowing the change in date of birth/age of the family pensioner in the PPO.
(iv) In order to avoid any possibility of recording an incorrect date of birth in the PPO, in future, the Government servant may be required to submit one of the documents indicated in Para 1 above as proof of date of birth of spouse or parents along with the details of family in Form 3. In the case of children certificate of date of birth from the Municipal authorities or from the local panchayat or from the head of a recognized school if the child is studying in such a school or from a Board of Education may be accepted.
5...."
(emphasis supplied) It follows from the OM dated 13.09.2012 quoted above that ordinarily family pension is to be determined on the basis of the date of birth recorded in the PPO or in the official records. If there is request for Page 3 of 6 CAT, Lucknow Bench OA No. 332/00240 of 2024 Smt. Sadapiyari Vs UOI &Ors. change of date of birth, the Head of Office can allow such change of date of birth if he is satisfied that there has been a bona fide mistake and the prescribed conditions have been fulfilled. It is noted that the onus of deciding the date of birth lies on the Head of Office. 6.2 It is well settled that pension is not a charity or bounty and it is not conditional on the whim or sweet will of the employer as held by Hon'ble Apex Court in Pepsu Road Transport Corporation vs Mangal Singh & Ors (2011) 11 SCC 702:
"To sum up, we state that the concept of pension has been considered by this Court time and again and in a catena of cases it has been observed that the pension is not a charity or bounty nor is it a conditional payment solely dependent on the sweet will of the employer. It is earned for rendering a long and satisfactory service. It is in the nature of deferred payment for the past services. It is a social security plan consistent with the socio-economic requirements of the Constitution when the employer is State within the meaning of Article 12 of the Constitution rendering social justice to a superannuated Government servant. It is a right attached to the office and cannot be arbitrarily denied."
(emphasis supplied) It is observed that the right to family pension emanates from the right to pension. Family pension cannot be denied merely on the ground of discrepancy in date of birth as the family pension is a consequential benefit of the pension which is held to be the deferred payment for long and satisfactory service rendered by the employee. 6.3 It is not in dispute that the deceased employee mentioned the date of birth of the applicant as 01.03.1949 in the nomination form prescribed by the respondents. Admittedly, the dates of birth in the PAN Card and the Aadhaar Card submitted by the applicant are different from the date of birth mentioned in the office records available with the respondents. There is no request for the change of date of birth on record from the applicant who is illiterate. In such circumstances, there are only two options open to the respondents: either they can accept the applicant's date of birth as entered in the nomination form available with Page 4 of 6 CAT, Lucknow Bench OA No. 332/00240 of 2024 Smt. Sadapiyari Vs UOI &Ors. them, or they can conduct an enquiry on the basis of the documents supplied by the applicant as to the date of birth they would consider acceptable. Not allowing family pension to the applicant by the respondentson account of different dates of birth is impermissible. 6.4 In conclusion, the impugned order dated 19.02.2024 is dehors the extant rules and instructions and cannot be sustained. 6.5 On the issue of payment of interest on delayed release of family pension, rule 65(1) of the Central Civil Services (Pension) Rules, 2021 is relevant and is reproduced below:
"65. Interest on delayed payment of gratuity, pension and family pension.-(1) In all cases where provisional pension or provisional family pension or provisional gratuity has not been sanctioned in accordance with these rulesor where the payment of pension or family pension or gratuity has been authorized later than the date when its payment becomes due, including in the cases of retirement otherwise than on superannuation, and it is clearly established that the delay in payment was attributable to administrative reasons or lapses, interest shall be paid on arrears of pension or family pension or gratuity at the rate and in the manner as applicable to General Provident Fundamount in accordance with the instructions issued from time to time:
Provided that no interest under this sub-rule shall be payable if the delay in payment was caused on account offailure on the part of the Government servant or the pensioner or the member of the family of the Government servantto comply with the procedure laid down by the Government for processing the pension or family pension case."
(emphasis supplied) It is observed that the respondents have wrongly deprived the applicant of family pension or provisional family pension, to which she is entitled, solely on the impermissible ground of discrepancy in her date of birth. Consequently, it is held that the respondents are bound to pay interest on arrears of family pension to the applicant in accordance with rule 65 (1) quoted above.
7.1 In view of the foregoing, the order dated 19.02.2024 is quashed and set aside.
Page 5 of 6 CAT, Lucknow Bench OA No. 332/00240 of 2024 Smt. Sadapiyari Vs UOI &Ors. 7.2 The respondents shall pay family pension to the applicant, including the arrears from the date due with interest in the manner applicable to the General Provident Fund in terms of rule 65(1) of the CCS (Pension) Rules, 2021.
7.3 The respondents shall take a decision on the acceptable date of birth of the applicant as per the procedure prescribed, failing which the date of birth as recorded in the nomination form available with them shall be deemed to be the applicant's date of birth. 7.4 The above exercise shall be completed by the respondents in its entirety within three months of the date of receipt of certified copy of this order.
7.5 This OA is disposed of in above terms.
7.6 Pending MAs, if any, are also disposed of.
7.7 The Parties shall bear their own costs.
(Pankaj Kumar)
Member (A)
vidya
Vidya Ben Digitally signed by Vidya Ben
Waghela
Waghela Date: 2025.08.25 17:15:39 +05'30'
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