Punjab-Haryana High Court
Gurchet Singh vs Pepsu Road Transport Corporation on 13 September, 2010
Author: Kanwaljit Singh Ahluwalia
Bench: Kanwaljit Singh Ahluwalia
Civil Writ Petition No.8597 of 2002 -: 1 :-
IN THE HIGH COURT FOR THE STATES OF PUNJAB AND
HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH
Civil Writ Petition No.8597 of 2002
Date of decision: September 13, 2010.
Gurchet Singh
...Petitioner(s)
v.
Pepsu Road Transport Corporation, Patiala
...Respondent(s)
CORAM:
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE KANWALJIT SINGH AHLUWALIA
Present: Ms. Anjali Khosla, Advocate, for
Shri Vikas Singh, Advocate, for the petitioner(s).
Shri HNS Gill, Advocate, for the respondent.
Kanwaljit Singh Ahluwalia, J. (Oral):
Gurchet Singh, petitioner joined the Indian Army on 27.7.1971
and was discharged on 29.11.1977. Petitioner was not given any pension by
the Indian Army. Thereafter, Petitioner joined the PEPSU Road Transport
Corporation (PRTC) as a Helper on 2.1.1978 and retired on 31.10.2002 on
the post of Fitter. On 22.7.1986, benefit of military service was granted to
the petitioner vide order at Annexure P-1, which reads as under:-
"PEPSU ROAD TRANSPORT CORPORATION PATIALA
No.9707/PRTC/Admn. Dated: 22.7.86
ORDER
Shri Gurchet Singh, Helper of PRTC, Budhlada depot joined PRTC on 2.1.1978. Before joining PRTC, he served the Civil Writ Petition No.8597 of 2002 -: 2 :- Indian Army from 27.7.1971 to 29.1.1977. He applied for the benefit of military service rendered by him vide application dated 17.6.86. After taking into consideration, the period of military service rendered by him from 3.12.71 to 30.4.77, his presumptive date of appointment works out to 5.8.72." This benefit was given to the petitioner under the Punjab Government National Emergency (Concession) Rules, 1965 (hereinafter called the Rules). The Rules provide that military service benefit is to be given qua increments, seniority and pension. These Rules relating to pension read as under:-
"(iii) Pension.- The period of military service mentioned in clause (i) shall count towards pension only in the case of appointments to permanent services or posts under the Government subject to the following conditions-
(i)the person concerned should not have earned a pension under military rules in respect of the military service in question;
(ii) any bonus or gratuity paid in respect of military service by the defence authorities shall have to be refunded to the State Government;
(iii) the period, if any, between the date of discharge from military service and the date of appointment to any service or post under the Government shall count for pension, provided such period does not exceed one year. Any period exceeding three years may also be allowed to count for pension in exceptional case under the order of the Government."
At the relevant time, when the petitioner joined the PRTC and Civil Writ Petition No.8597 of 2002 -: 3 :- the benefit of military service was granted to the petitioner, pension scheme was not available. The employees were entitled only to contributory provident fund at the time of superannuation.
During the course of employment, PRTC decided to switch- over from payment of contributory provident fund to pension scheme called the PEPSU Road Transport Corporation Employees Pension/Gratuity and General Provident Fund Regulations, 1992 (hereinafter called as the Regulations). As per regulation 6, qualifying service is to be determined from the day when an employee started contributing towards contributory provident fund. Regulation 6 reads as under:-
"6. qualifying service: (1) The qualifying service will be taken into account with effect from the date of an existing employee started contributing towards the Contributory Provident Fund."
A conjoint reading of the Rules and the Regulations lead to an inference that as and when pension is introduced, employee is required to deposit the amount of gratuity and bonus received from the army. Since the employees of the Corporation were paid pension, therefore, petitioner was not bound to deposit gratuity and bonus received earlier from the army authorities. If, at the time of joining the service of the Corporation, the employees of the Corporation were paid pension, petitioner would have deposited the amount of gratuity and bonus received from the army. Petitioner joined the Corporation on 2.1.1978 and was retired by it on 31.10.2002. The Pension Regulations came into operation with effect from 15.6.1992 whereas the military service benefit was granted to the petitioner on 22.7.1986. It was incumbent upon the authorities of the Corporation to issue notice to those employees who had been granted military service Civil Writ Petition No.8597 of 2002 -: 4 :- benefit to deposit the amount of gratuity and bonus and also of contributory provident fund from the day their presumptive date of appointment was fixed.
The concessions made under the military service rules were not mere formalities. There was sanguine promise made to those, who leaving their families behind, went to the battle-fields to defend the nation. Those who went to answer the clarion call given by the nation, cannot be denied their rightful dues on the basis of narrow construction of the rules. Thus, on the basis of harmonious interpretation of the provisions to grant benefit which is due to those who went to save the nation at the war front, the petitioner Gurchet Singh has been given 5 years and 5 months, approximately, benefit of military service. Therefore , this Court is of the view that service rendered by the petitioner as military service is to be taken into consideration.
Thus, on deposit of amount of gratuity and CBRG, if any, along with contributory provident fund, which the petitioner had to pay, and interest at the rate of 12% on these components, 5 years 5 months service rendered by Gurchet Singh shall be counted as qualifying service towards computation and calculation of his pension.
The petition is allowed in the aforesaid terms.
No order as to costs.
[Kanwaljit Singh Ahluwalia] September 08, 2010. Judge kadyan