HC raps UHBVN for being insensitive to widow's plight

Saurabh Malik

Chandigarh, March 2

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has rapped UHBVN and other respondents for exhibiting total inconsiderateness towards a widow’s troubles, while allowing her plea for late husband’s retirement benefits with Rs 1 lakh costs. Justice Raj Mohan Singh made it clear that the amount would be paid, along with other retirement dues, for “illegal treatment meted to her for a period of more than 37 years”.

long wait for retirement benefits

• Describing it as a classic case of insensitivity towards her plight, Justice Raj Mohan Singh of the High Court asserted her husband died in 1985 and she was more than 75-year-old now
• Yet, the retirement/pension benefits even without counting the period towards work charge service had not been finalised on the plea of non-availability of relevant record

Justice Raj Mohan Singh also disposed of her petition with a direction to the respondents to pay Rs 5 lakh to the petitioner-widow immediately as an interim relief.

Describing it as a classic case of insensitivity towards her plight, Justice Raj Mohan Singh asserted her husband died in 1985. She was more than 75-year-old now. Yet, the retirement/pension benefits even without counting the period towards work charge service had not been finalised on the plea of non-availability of relevant record.

The admonition came on the petition by Pholo Devi for directing the respondents to grant pensionary benefits by counting her husband’s work charge service from December 1, 1968, to August 30, 1976, towards qualifying service for pension. Annual interest of 18 per cent from the accrual date till final realisation was also sought.

Her counsel’s stand was that the relevant record was “very much available” with the respondents. Even the petitioner had provided the relevant record to the respondents, including EPF details and other documents.

Justice Raj Mohan Singh asserted counting work charge period towards qualifying service for pensionary benefits was settled position of law. But the respondent-department had not even finalised the retirement dues of the petitioner’s husband even without assessing the work charge period towards qualifying service. The plea regarding the non-availability of record was “fully unjustified”.

In his detailed order, Justice Raj Mohan Singh added Rs 5 lakh interim relief would be paid without being influenced by any other consideration at the current stage. The respondents would thereafter proceed to count her husband’s work charge service, while computing total qualifying service along with 12 per cent per annum interest from the date the amount became due till its final realisation.

“The amount shall be adjusted by the respondent-department while processing the case of the widow, whose husband had died in 1985 and even family pension has not been prepared till date what to talk of other retiral benefits arising out of the length of the service for which the husband of the petitioner remained in the respondent-Department,” Justice Raj Mohan Singh asserted.

Before parting with the case, Justice Raj Mohan Singh set a two-month deadline, failing which the petitioner would be entitled to penal interest of 24 per cent per annum from the accrual date till final realisation.