Central Administrative Tribunal - Delhi
Satish Pal Sabbarwal vs Delhi Transport Corporation, Govt. Of ... on 11 August, 2023
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Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020
CENTRAL ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL
PRINCIPAL BENCH: NEW DELHI
O.A. No. 180/2020
Reserved on : 21.07.2023
Pronounced on : 11.08.2023
Hon'ble Dr. Chhabilendra Roul, Member (A)
1. Sh. Satish Pal Sabbarwal,
S/o. Late Sh. Saudagar Mal
R/o. 2/181, Subhash Nagar, New Delhi
Aged 79, Group C,
Designation Tel. Ph. Monitor
2. Sh. Adarsh Agarwal,
S/o. Sh. A. N. Agarwal
R/o. 17 2nd Floor, Chander Puri,
Navyoug Mkt. Ghaziabad U.P.
Aged 71, Group C,
Designation Ex. T. Opt.
3. Sh. Man Mohan Ranjan
S/o. Sh. K. B. Ranjan
R/o. 944 F. F. Dr. Nokrtve Nagar
Aged 76, Group C,
Designation Ex. T. Insp.
4. Sh. R. K. Narang
S/o. Sh. Kanshi Ram
R/o. A/22-B, Ashok Vihar Phase-II,
Delhi 110 052
Aged 75, Group C,
Designation Ex LW1
2
Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020
5. Sh. Azad Singh
S/o. Sh. Mahander Singh
R/o. F-189 Gali No. 2 Rajpur,
Loni Road, Ghaziabad, U.P.
Aged 65, Group C,
Designation Ex. TTC
6. Sh. Baleshwar
S/o. Sh. Maher Singh
R/o. A-68A Rajive Nagar Begum Pur,
New Delhi - 110 086
Aged 74, Group C,
Designation Ex TI
7. Sh. Gian Chand
S/o. Late Sh. Gopi Chand
R/o. B-I/1F Jawahar Park,
Ghaziabad, U.P.
Aged 68, Group C,
Designation Ex. Cond
8. Sh. Gopal Dutt
S/o. Lt. Sh. Malhotra Dutt
R/o. H. No. 618 Gali No. 26 B2
Harsh Vihar, Delhi - 110 093.
Aged 68, Group C,
Designation Ex. Sr. Clerk
9. Sh. Fateh Chand
S/o. Lt. Sh. Hoti Lal
R/o. E/32 Nano Park, Uttam Nagar,
Delhi - 110 059
Aged 73, Group C,
Designation Ex. ATI
10. Sh. Mohan Singh Negi
S/o. Lt. Sh. Ram Singh Negi
R/o. 5/160 Vasundhara Ghaziabad, U.P.
Aged 68, Group C,
Designation Ex. Cashier
3
Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020
11. Sh. Nandan Singh
S/o. Lt. Sh. Soor Singh
R/o. 609/14B, Krishana Gali No. 8,
Maujpur, Delhi - 110 053
Aged 70, Group C,
Designation Ex. Sr. Clerk
12. Sh. Om Dutt
S/o. Lt. Sh. Inder Dutt
R/o. 288 Bagh Kaja Khan Kishan Ganj,
Delhi - 110 007.
Aged 70, Group C,
Designation Ex. Cashier
13. Sh. Prithvi Pal Sahani
S/o. Lt. Sh. Hakin Rai Sahani
R/o. 5/95 Subhash Nagar, Delhi - 110 027
Aged 70, Group C,
Designation Ex. T. Insp.
14. Sh. Ramesh Chand
S/o. Lt. Sh. Jai Kishan
R/o. V. 287 H. No. 15 Vijaya Park,
Moujpuri, Delhi
Aged 63, Group C,
Designation Ex Cond
15. Smt. Bhagwati Devi
W/o. Late Sh. Rajbir Singh
R/o. Vill. Dagar Pur, P.O. Ratal Distt.
Baghpat, U.P.
Aged 68, Group C,
Designation Ex TI
16. Sh. Satveer Singh
S/o. Lt. Sh. Harpal Singh
R/o. E-80 Indra Enclave, Loni Road,
Ghaziabad, U.P.
Aged 65, Group C,
Designation Ex. Dr.
4
Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020
17. Smt. Savita Sharma
S/o. W/o. Late Sh. Sudhir Sharma
Lt. Sh. Ram Niwas Sharma
R/o. S-6/143 Madhuban Colony,
Meerut, U.P.
Aged 67, Group C,
Designation Sr. Steno (H)
18. Sh. Virender Kumar
S/o. Lt Sh. Jagdish Pd.
R/o. Pocket F-23, MIG Flat No. 61,
Ground Floor Sec-3, Rohini, Delhi - 110 085
Aged 70, Group C,
Designation Ex. Acctt.
19. Sh. Veer Daman
S/o. Lt. Trilok Chand Jain
R/o. H. No. 50 Gali No. I Chander Lok
Colony Shahdara, Delhi - 110093
Aged 70, Group C,
Designation Ex. T.T.C.
20. Sh. Virender Singh
S/o. Lt. Karan Singh
R/o. H. 96, Gango Vihar, Delhi - 110 094
Aged 63, Group C, Designation Ex. Dr.
21. Sh. Ved Prakash
S/o. Lt. Sh. Daryav Singh
R/o. 137/1, Tanda Ngr, Jahri Pur,
Delhi - 110 094
Aged 64, Group C,
Designation Ex. A-TI
22. Sh. Brij Mohan Sharma
S/o. Lt. Shi Janak Raj Sharma
R/o. 10/8 D, Sarojini Nidhi Park,
Shastri Nagar, Delhi - 110 031
Aged 66, Group C,
Designation Ex. Acctt
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Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020
23. Sh. Rameshwar Dayal
S/o. Lt. Sh. Shiv Charan Lal
R/o. H. No. 607/11 Gali No. 11,
Adars Mohalla Maujpur,
Delhi 110 053
Aged 69, Group C,
Designation Ex. Cond
24. Sh. Suresh Pal Singh
S/o. Lt. Sh. Ajab Singh
R/o. E-322, Gali No. 3 Meet Nagar,
Delhi-110 094.
Aged 64, Group C,
Designation Ex. Cond.
25. Sh. Jagdish Chander
S/o. Lt. Sh. Phool Singh
R/o. 86 G.I. Uttam Nagar,
New Delhi - 110 059
Aged 70, Group B,
Designation Ex. Dy Mgr. (Tr.)
26. Sh. Sant Lal Aneja
S/o. Lt. Sh. Devi Dutta Mall
R/o. S-2/82, Old Mahabir Nagar,
New Delhi - 110 018.
Aged 76, Group C,
Designation Ext.1.
27. Sh. Jagdish Parsad Shah
S/o. Lt. Sh. Bishun,
R/o. B-271, Nehru Vihar, Delhi
Aged 71, Group C,
Designation Ex. Sr. Clerk
28. Sh. Gudev Singh ASI
S/o. Lt. Sh. Ratan Singh ASI
R/o. ER-36 Inder Puri,
Delhi - 110 012
Aged 82, Group A, Designation Ex. C.M.O.
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Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020
29. Sh. Budhi Yadav
S/o. Lt. Sh. Ram Garib
R/o. 2077 Begumpur, Rajiv Nagar,
Delhi 110 086
Aged 74, Group C,
Designation Ex. TI
30. Sh. Mahabir Singh
S/o. Lt. Sh. Devi Ram
R/o. G-I/86 Uttam Nagar, New Delhi 110 059
Aged 74, Group C,
Designation Ex. TI
31. Sh. Har Pal Singh
S/o. Sh. Karnail Singh
R/o. WZ-1219, Rani Bagh, Delhi 110 034
Aged 64, Group C,
Designation Ex. Sr. Steno
32. Sh. Kali Charan Singh
S/o. Lt. Sh. Ved Ram Singh
R/o. S. 107 A Sunder Block,
Sharkerpur, Delhi- 110 092
Aged 70, Group C,
Designation Ex. AI
33. Sh. Haram Singh
S/o. Lt. Sh. Khajan Singh
R/o. Village Nanu PQ. Mandolla
Distt. Ghaziabad, U.P.
Aged 70, Group C,
Designation Ex. ATI
34. Sh. Ram Prakash Sharma
S/o. Lt. Sh. Kishan Sharma
R/o. H. No. 10 R.P.S. Colony Khanpur,
M. B. Road, New Delhi - 110 062
Aged 69, Group C,
Designation Ex. Acctt.
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Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020
35. Sh. Tilak Raj
S/o. Lt. Sh. Chanderbhan
R/o. A.Z.C./15A Mahavir Enclv.
Dabri Palam, Delhi - 110 045.
Aged 72, Group C,
Designation Ex. Asstt. Foremon
36. Sh. Nawal Kishore
S/o. Lt. Sh. Bihari Lal
R/o. 80 Rajpath Sec-15,
Rohini, Delhi - 110 089
Aged 63, Group B,
Designation Ex. Dy Mgr (A/c)
37. Sh. Umesh Babu
S/o. Lt. Sh. M. L. Saxena
R/o. 1/9335, Gali No. 7 Rahlash Nagar,
West Shahda, Delhi - 110 032
Aged 64, Group C,
Designation Ex. Mech
38. Sh. Jagdish Parsad
S/o. Lt. Sh. Chhida Lal
R/o. A 574, Gali No. 6, Meet Nagar,
Delhi - 110 094.
Aged 62, Group C,
Designation Ex ATI
39. Sh. Ram Kumar Sharma
S/o. Lt. Sh. Girrar Singh
R/o. 3108/226 Chander Nagar,
Trinagar, Delhi - 110 035.
Aged 66, Group C,
Designation Ex. TTC
40. Sh. Tula Ram Vimal
S/o. Lt. Sh. Pattu Lal
R/o. E-22, Sadbhawana Apptt.
Parwana Road, Delhi - 110 034
Aged 76, Group C, Designation Ex OS
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Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020
41. Sh. Ved Prakash
S/o. Lt. Sh. Sumer Singh
R/o. B. 590 Gali No. 6 Subhash Vihar
Uttri Ganda, Delhi 110 053
Aged 63, Group C,
Designation Ex ATI
42. Sh. Radhey Shyam Sharma,
S/o. Lt. Sh. Pyare Lal Sharma,
R/o. C-7/95 Yamuna Vihar, New Delhi - 110 053
Aged 77, Group C,
Designation Ex Acctt.
43. Sh. Hari Chand Satija
S/o. Lt. Sh. Kundu Ram
R/o. 178 Parma Nand Colony,
Delhi - 110 009
Aged 77, Group C,
Designation Ex Asstt.
44. Sh. Rahtash Kumar
S/o. Lt. Sh. Bheru Pd.
R/o. F-520 Madipur Colony, Delhi 110 063
Aged 77, Group C,
Designation Ex. O.S.
45. Sh. Bhagwan Dass
S/o. Sh. Chhotu Ram
R/o. 47/4713 Raghubir Pun. Karol Bagh,
New Delhi - 110 005
Aged 78, Group C,
Designation Ex. O.S.
46. Sh. Ram Maher Singh
S/o. Sh. Zill Singh
R/o. 559/1-A Munrika Village,
Delhi - 110 067
Aged 66, Group C,
Designation Ex. TTC
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Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020
47. Smt. Suman Saxena
W/o. Loksh Sudhir Kumar Saxena
Lt. Sh. K. N. Saxena
R/o. H.No. 1093, Gali Raja Ugarsain
Silk Ram Bazar,
Delhi 110 006
Aged 70, Group C,
Designation Ex. A.I.
48. Sh. Jagdish Pal Sharma
S/o. Lt. Sh. Vindavan Sharma
R/o. 1083 Gali Raja Ugarasain,
Sita Ram Bazar, Delhi 110 006
Aged 73, Group C,
Designation Ex. O.S.
49. Sh. Om Prakash Gaur
S/o. Lt. Sh. Jeet Ram
R/o. V. Tejpur, Khard P.O. Chhawala,
Delhi 110 071
Aged 70, Group C,
Designation Ex. Sr. Clerk
50. Sh. Karan Pal Singh
S/o. Lt. Sh. Salook Chand
R/o. 126 Shivani Encl. Part II
Kokrolla Delhi 110 078
Aged 63, Group C,
Designation Ex. Sr. Clerk
51. Sh. Pran Nath
S/o. Lt. Sh. Nand Lal
R/o. 221/68 Gali No. 2 Vishnu Garden,
New Delhi 110 018
Aged 81, Group C,
Designation Ex. TI
52. Sh. Laxmi Sethi
S/o. Lt. Sh. Hem Raj Sethi
R/o. 194/2 Gali No. 9 Than Singh Nagar,
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Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020
Anand Parkot Delhi 110 005
Aged 81, Group C,
Designation Ex. Tr. Insp.
53. Sh. Jai Narain Sharma
S/o. Lt. Sh. Chaman Lal
R/o. V. G. P.O. Samar Gopalpur
Distt. Rohtak (Haryana)
Aged 85, Group C,
Designation Ex. Tr. Supr
54. Sh. Ram Singh Yadav
S/o. Lt. Sh. Lal Chand
R/o. M-2/A-I, Jhulad Apptt. Pritam Pura,
Delhi - 110 034
Aged 72, Group C,
Designation Ex. O.S.
55. Sh. Yogendra Kr. Verma
S/o. Sh. Om Prakash
R/o. 6/210 Gali No. 6,
Mandoli, Extn. Delhi - 110 093
Aged 65, Group C,
Designation Ex. ATI
56. Sh. Sheo Vir Singh
S/o. Sh. Tara Singh
R/o. V. Checher Pur, P.O. Gunga Khan,
Distt. Baghpat, U.P.
Aged 63, Group C,
Designation Ex. Driver
57. Sh. Nawab Singh
S/o. Sh. Attar Singh
R/o. E-409, Khajoori Colony, Delhi 110 094
Aged 63, Group C,
Designation Ex. ATI.1
58. Sh. Kasturi Lal
S/o. Late Sh. Mukand Lal
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Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020
R/o. W.Z.K. 32 Krishna Park,
Gali No. 13, Tilak Nagar 110 018
Aged 73, Group C,
Designation Ex. Asstt. Foreman
59. Sh. Man Mohan Singh
S/o. Lt. Sh. Thakur Singh
R/o. D-54 DTC Colony GT Road,
Delhi 110 009
Aged 84, Group C,
Designation Ex. Acctt.
60. Sh. Anil Kumar
S/o. Lt. Sh. Dharam Paul
R/o. 75 Tilak Khand Giri Nagar,
Kalkaji New Delhi 110 019
Aged 67, Group C,
Designation Ex. Asstt. Foreman
61. Sh. Suresh Kumar Jha
S/o. Lt. Sh. F. C. Jha
R/o. F-53 Radhey Puri POK Nagar,
Delhi 110051
Aged 66, Group C,
Designation Ex. Fitter
62. Sh. Vinod Kumar Kohli
S/o. Lt. Sh. Harish Chand
R/o. A.D. 100 (P) Shalimar Bagh,
Delhi 110 088
Aged 65, Group C,
Designation Ex. O.S.
63. Sh. Krishan Gopal Khurana
S/o. Late Sh. Tokam Ram
R/o. 668/7 Gali No. 2
Rani Bagh Delhi 110 034
Aged 71, Group C,
Designation Ex. AI
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Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020
64. Sh. Murli Dhar Shukla
S/o. Late Sh. Charanji Lal
R/o. 61-B Pocket D Ashok Vihar Phase III,
Delhi - 110 052
Aged 84, Group C, Designation Ex. Cost Acctt.
65. Sh. Hari Shankar Sharma
S/o. Lt. Sh. Munni Lal Sharma
R/o. 239 D Pocket "F" Dilshad Garden
Delhi - 110 095
Aged 70, Group C,
Designation Ex. Foreman
66. Sh. Ajit Kumar Kapoor
S/o. Lt. Sh. Om Parkash Kapoor
R/o. 24 D Jhang Apptt. Rohani
Sect 13, Delhi
Aged 68, Group C,
Designation Ex. S. K.
67. Sh. Om Singh
S/o. Lt. Sh. Dalal Singh
R/o. A-64 Meet Nagar Gali No. 6,
Delhi - 110 094
Aged 67, Group C,
Designation Ex. Dr.
68. Sh. Yash Pal Singh
S/o. Sh. Zila Singh
R/o. A-226 Gali No. 6 Meet Nagar,
Delhi - 110094
Aged 64, Group C,
Designation Ex. Sr. Clerk,
69. Sh. Brij Pal Singh
S/o. Lt. Sh. Sukhbeer Singh
R/o. E-2/255 Uttaranchal Colony,
Loni Rod Border Ghaziabad U.P.
Aged 64, Group C,
Designation Ex. Tr. Insp.
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Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020
70. Sh. Harbans Lal
S/o. Lt. Sh. Hans Raj
R/o. 7/51 Geeta Colony, Delhi - 110 031
Aged 70, Group C,
Designation Ex. Sr. Clerk
71. Sh. Pawan Kumar
S/o. Sh. Brij Bhushan Lal
R/o. A-77/2, Gali No. 6 Meet Nagar,
Delhi - 110 094
Aged 67, Group C,
Designation Ex. Drive
72. Sh. Subhash Chand
S/o. Sh. Asha Ram
R/o. 322 Om Shant Bhawan Village
Bakhtawapur, Delhi - 110 036
Aged 62, Group C,
Designation Ex. ASK
73. Sh. Raj Kanwar
S/o. Sh. Laxmi Narain
R/o. 116 C Block Gali No. 9,
Vijaya Nagar, Bawana Delhi 110 039
Aged 64, Group C,
Designation Ex. Sr. Clerk
74. Sh. Sita Ram
S/o. Lt. Sh. Ram Rang
R/o. 16/97 Subhash Nagar Bac Side
New Delhi 110 027
Aged 84, Group C,
Designation Ex. Sr. Clerk
75. Sh. Dharam Pal
S/o. Sh. Chandar Pal
R/o. C-1/37/2 Rajapuri Gali No. 5
Uttam Nagar
Aged 73, Group C,
Designation Ex. Sr. Clerk
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Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020
76. Sh. Yogender Prasad
S/o. Sh. Kanshi Ram
R/o. A-337, Indrapuri Lari
Ghaziabad - U.P.
Aged 62, Group C,
Designation Ex. ATI
77. Shyam Mahan Sharma
S/o. Lt. Sh. Murli Manohar Gaur
R/o. D-24 Ayodhaya Enclave Sect XIII,
Rohini Delhi - 110 085
Aged 79, Group C,
Designation Ex. Tr. Sup
78. Sh. Ganga Ram
S/o. Sh. Punnu Ram
R/o. C-295 Madi Pur Colony, Delhi
Aged 70, Group C,
Designation Ex. Tr. Supr.
79. Sh. Om Prakash
S/o. Lt. Sh. Hari Ram
R/o. 59/17 Ground Floor
Ashok Nagar (T. Nagar)
Delhi - 110 018
Aged 77, Group C,
Designation Ex. ATI
80. Smt. Shakti Sharma
W/o. Late Sh. Laxman Dass Sharma
R/o. 413 Bhai Parma Nand Colony,
Delhi - 110 009
Aged 79, Group C,
Designation Ex. OS
81. Smt. Santosh Bhardwaj
W/o. Vishwa Bardhak Bhardwaj
Late Sh. Jagdish Mittan
R/o. B-50 Dasrath Pari Palam,
Dabri Road, New Delhi - 110 045
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Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020
Aged 84, Group B,
Designation Dy Mgr (Tr.)
82. Smt. Saroj Devi
W/o. Late Sh. Ram Maher Singh
Lt. Sh. Jahan Singh
R/o. H. No. 66, Gali Noo. 3,
Jagdamba Colony, Jehari Pur,
Delhi - 110 094
Aged 60, Group C,
Designation Ex. T.I.
83. Sh. Bahadur Singh
S/o. Late Sh. Bihari Lal
R/o. Village Fateh Puri PO Darauli
Distt. Rewari (Haryana)
Aged 78, Group C,
Designation Ex. Acctt.
84. Smt. Praminder Kaur,
W/o. Late Sh. S. S. Hill
R/o. 63, Bharat N,agar
Delhi - 110 052
Aged 60, Group C,
Designation Ex. Telephone Insp. No. 1163
...Applicants
(By Advocate : Ms. Anupama Bansal)
VERSUS
Delhi Transport Corporation
Through its Chairman -Cum-M.D.
Govt. of NCT of Delhi
I.P. Estate
New Delhi - 110 002. ...Respondent
(By Advocate : Ms. Aarti Mahajan Shedha with Ms. Shriya
Sharma)
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Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020
ORDER
M.A No. 262/2020 :
The present MA has been filed by the applicants seeking permission to file the OA jointly.
2. For the reasons mentioned in the MA, the same is allowed and the applicants are allowed to join together in a single OA.
M.A No. 263/2020 :
The present MA has been filed by the applicants seeking exemption from filing certified original order and typed copies of the dim annexures.
2. For the reasons mentioned in the MA, the same is allowed.
O.A No. 180/2020 :
The present OA has been filed by 84 applicants against the refusal of Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) for non-implementation of pension schemes of 1992, 1995 and 2002 as well as non grant of pension and other 17 Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020 pensionary benefits to the applicants in pursuance with the Hon'ble Delhi High Court order dated 14.09.2016 in Writ Petition (c) No. 6630/2016.
2. The factual matrix of the present case is as follows:-
2.1 The present applicants were appointed in Delhi Transport Corporation as Apprentice, Conductors and Drivers on various dates starting from 1954 to 1983. All of them have now retired from service between 1998 to 2016.
2.2 Vide order No. 16/27-11-1992, the respondent-Corporation introduced pension scheme vide the said order. The employees were asked to exercise their options to be part of the pension scheme or to express their intention whether they decline to be part of the pension scheme. In case any employee of DTC who did not exercise any option within the prescribed period of 30 days, quits the service or dies without exercising option, he or 18 Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020 she shall be deemed to have opted for the pension scheme. All the applicants exercised their option of opting out of the DTC pension scheme and duly submitted their required option forms. In other words, the applicants preferred to remain under the CPF Scheme applicable to the DTC employees. 2.3 On 16.02.1994, on request of some employees the respondent circulated letter inviting employees who had opted for DTC pension scheme to opt out, if they would like to do so. Again, on 28.10.2002, the respondent-Corporation issued a circular seeking options from employees who are not already covered under DTC pension scheme to again exercise their option to be part of the DTC pension scheme. The clause (iii) of the said of the said letter stated that :-
"iii. Inviting/exercising option shall be provisional and subject to exemption from the RPFC and refund of the amount held with them. In case, no exemption is received from RPFC, this option shall become redundant, and the status of an employee shall be the same as is before the issue of these orders."19
Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020 2.4 The Regional Provident Fund Commissioner vide their reference dated 07.08.2007 refused to refund the CPF contribution in respect of the employees who opted for DTC Pension scheme and also refused to grant exemption from the DTC Pension scheme stating that the exemption could not be granted for a particular group of employees under the Provident Fund Act, but it could be granted only to the establishment as a whole. 2.5 Due to persistent demand by the employees of the DTC who had opted out of the pension scheme, the Ministry for Transport called a meeting on 05.06.2015 to consider the case of the non pension optees. After detailed discussion, again the demand of those employees who had opted out of the pension scheme was rejected. From time to time, the DTC employees have filed various Original Applications which have been decided in respect of the specific facts and circumstances of the case and the orders/Judgments have been appealed to the 20 Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020 higher Courts. However, there is no finality regarding applicability of DTC pension scheme to the employees who opted out of the pension scheme at the appropriate time.
2.6 These present group of employees have cited various orders of this Tribunal and judgments of the Courts to claim that they should be covered under the DTC pension scheme of 1992.
3. In the present OA, the applicants have sought the following relief(s) :-
"8(a) Direct the respondents to grant pension and other pensionary benefits with interest as granted by this Hon'ble Court in the identical case on 14.9.2016 in writ petition [C] No. 6630/2016 by the High Court of Delhi at New Delhi to the applicants;
(b) Award costs to the applicants and
(c) pass any other order or grant any other relief as the Court may deem fit."
4. Notice was issued to the respondent on 20.01.2020. Proxy counsel on behalf of Ms. Aarti Mahajan Shedha, learned counsel appeared and accepted notice on behalf of the respondent.
21
Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020
5. The applicants in their OA have taken the following grounds in support of their contention and particularly cited a series of judgments :
5.1 The DTC is an establishment which is automatically excluded from EPF Act, 1988 under Section 16(1) (c) of the said Act, after the introduction of the pension Scheme on 23.11.1992. 5.2 Earlier the DTC was functioning under the Delhi Road Transport Authority (DRTA) Act, 1950 and later under the Delhi Municipal Act, 1857. As per the enactment particularly, Section 4(e) of the DRTA Act, 1950, every employee of DTC would continue with same right to pension, gratuity etc at par with employees of the erstwhile DRTA and MCD. This service condition could not be altered to the disadvantage of the employees without their express consent.
5.3 Once, the DTC has introduced the pension scheme with effect from 23.11.1992, the applicants 22 Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020 automatically came under the pension scheme under clause 9 of the said scheme.
6. In support of the grounds furnished by the applicants in their OA, learned counsel for the applicants cited the following orders of this Tribunal as well as the judgments of the Delhi High Court as mentioned below :-
(1) W.P. (C) No. 4728 of 2014 in DTC vs. Raj Singh ;
(2) W.P. (C) No. 6630 of 2016 in B. R. Khokha ;
(3) W.P. (C) No. 9027 of 2019 ;
(4) O.A No. 1276 of 2015 in Rajender Kumar Modi
vs. DTC and
(5) O.A No. 3972 of 2016 in Madan Gopal vs. DTC.
7. Learned counsel for the applicants averred that some of these orders of this Tribunal and judgments by the Hon'ble High Courts have also been confirmed by the Hon'ble Supreme Court. The claim of the petitioners thereof have been accepted and the respondent in thise 23 Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020 case i.e., the Delhi Transport Corporation has been directed to consider the case of the applicants to allow them the benefit of the pension scheme of 1992. The facts and circumstances of the present case are similar and hence, the ratio of judgments in the aforementioned cases should be squarely applicable in the instant case and the applicants should be granted benefit of the pension scheme of the DTC introduced in the year 1992.
8. Per contra, learned counsel for the respondent stated that as per clause 9 of the pension scheme introduced by DTC vide their order dated 27.11.1992, if any employee of DTC did not exercise his or her option within the prescribed period of 30 days, they would be deemed to have opted for pension scheme. But in the instant case, all the applicants have specifically exercised their option of opting out of the DTC pension scheme.
The respondent has given the details of option forms furnished by the respondent in 1992. These have been attached with the counter affidavit filed by the 24 Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020 respondent and these are at Annexure R/1 from page 53 to 595.
8.1 In view of this, she stated that the applicants, employees on their own volition had opted out of the pension scheme in 1992. At this belated stage, they cannot be allowed to get the benefit of the said pension scheme.
8.2 Learned counsel for the respondents further averred that the DTC vide office order dated 28.10.2002 sought options from the employees who could not come under DTC pension scheme. However, it was expressly stated in Paragraph - iii of the said circular that inviting/exercising of the said option was provisional and subject to exemption from the Regional Provident Fund Commissioner and re-fund of the amount held with them, to DTC and if the exemption was not granted by the RPFC, the said action shall become redundant. She further averred that if some of these applicants have exercised their option again in 25 Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020 2002, because of the refusal of the RPFC to refund the amount held by this, they could not have come under the DTC pension scheme as the pension option of 2002 become non-functional. This is applicable not only for the applicants who might have exercised their option in pursuance with order dated 28.10.2002, but also other employees of DTC who might have done so. She stated that Regional Provident Fund Commissioner refused to refund the EPF contribution and hence the employees who opted to be covered under pension scheme could not become functional. She further referred to the meeting dated 05.06.2015 held by the Minister of Transport where a decision was taken that the non pension optees, whether existing or retired, would not be considered for pension.
8.3 As regards judgments of the Hon'ble Supreme Court/High Court and the orders of the Tribunal cited by the learned counsel for the applicants, learned counsel for the respondent averred that in 26 Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020 most of the cases, the facts and circumstances are quite distinguishable from the present case. In the instant case, the applicants have clearly given their option to be out of the pension scheme in 1992. The aforementioned cases cited by the learned counsel for the applicants, do not cover such cases. To be specific, she cited the case of B. R. Khokha in W. P. (C) No. 6630/2016 (supra). The DTC was unable to show the option form whereby the applicants had exercised their option opting out of DTC pension scheme and hence, their case was considered to have been covered under the scheme as deemed optee under clause 9 of the said scheme. However, in the instant case, details of opting out options by the present applicants have been produced by the respondents in their counter affidavit (Annexure R-1). The present applicants have opted out of the pension scheme and the option forms are submitted as part of the Annexure R-1.
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Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020 9. In view of this, the present case is quite
distinguishable from B. R. Khokha's case as cited by the learned counsel for applicants. In case of Raj Singh (supra), the DTC's contention was that the applicant's name did not figure in the names of the pension optees and therefore, he should be presumed to have opted out of the pension scheme. This contention of the DTC was rejected in DTC Vs. Zille Singh and Jagdish Chandra's case (supra). The petitioners therein opted for the pension scheme in response to the circular dated 28.10.2002. However, the same scheme was non- functional because of refusal of the Regional Provident Fund Commissioner to refund the CPF amount.
10. Learned counsel for the respondent further cited the judgment of the Hon'ble Apex Court in DTC Employees Association vs. DTC LPA 330/2002 decided on 02.09.2002. In the said case, the Hon'ble Apex Court held that the petitioner would have no right to switch back to the pension scheme after they have availed of the benefits under CPF scheme after opting out of the 28 Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020 pension scheme. Similar decision has been given by this Tribunal in O.A No. 462/2011 in Nepal Singh vs. DTC, in Devesh Kumar Nautiyal vs. DTC in OA No. 2235/2017, in Shiv Prakash vs. DTC in OA No. 1976/2012 and in Lal Singh in WP(C) No. 4952/2013 decided on 05.12.2022.
11. I have gone through the records of the case thoroughly and heard the arguments by both the counsels carefully. In the instant case, it is established from the records submitted by the respondents that the applicants opted out of the pension scheme by giving their option in 1992. In pursuance to the clause 9 of the said scheme, the applicants were not entitled to be covered under the pension scheme of DTC of 1992. As regards the option given pursuant to the circular dated 28.10.2002, the options were taken from an employees and a condition was stated in the circular that "it is subject to the exemption from the Regional Provident Fund Commissioner and refund of the amount held by them to the DTC". As the Regional Provident Fund Commissioner refused to consider the demand of the 29 Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020 DTC, the said option in pursuance to the circular dated 28.02.2002 becomes non-functional. Subsequently, the aggrieved employees of the DTC have approached various forums and in the meeting dated 05.06.2015, the Transport Minister discussed the matter at length and decided that the employees who had opted out of the pension scheme in 1992 cannot be covered under the pension scheme giving any relaxation to them. In view of this, admittedly, the matter was finally decided by the respondent-Corporation that the employees of DTC who opted out of the pension scheme in 1992, cannot be given the benefit of said pension scheme giving relaxation to change their option from CPF to pension scheme.
12. As regards the citations furnished by the learned counsel for the applicants, the learned counsel for the respondent have effectively rebutted the averments made by him and she has clearly mentioned how these judgments are distinguishable from the instant case. I do agree with the averments made by learned counsel for 30 Item 27 (C-5) O.A. No. 180/2020 the respondent in this regard. Moreover, the matter regarding coverage of DTC employees who opted out of the pension scheme have been agitated in various forums. As it has been cited by the learned counsel in DTC Employees Association vs. DTC in LPA No. 330/2002, the Hon'ble Apex Court has clearly mentioned that the petitioners have no right to switch back to the pension scheme after they have availed the benefit of CPF scheme.
13. In view of this, I find the present O.A lacks merit and hence, it is dismissed. No order as to costs.
(Dr. Chhabiledra Roul) Member (A) /Mbt/