HC rules: No recovery from pension without consent; says abrupt deductions ‘undermine economic dignity’

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has held that recovery of excess payment cannot be carried out from a retired government employee’s pension without his express written consent. Justice Harpreet Singh Brar also asked the Reserve Bank of India to issue instructions to all agency banks that “no recovery of excess amount from the pension of a government employee shall be effected without the pensioner’s knowledge and consent, or without the issuance of a prior notice.”

The assertions and the direction came as the Bench described abrupt deductions a blow to the “economic dignity and emotional stability” of post-retirement life. The ruling came in a case where Rs 6,63,688 was deducted from a retired employee’s personal bank account and the transaction was marked as ‘recovery of excess pension.’ The Bench was assisted on the petitioner’s behalf by advocates Raman B Garg, Mayank Garg and Navdeep Singh.

Justice Brar observed “abrupt recovery of pension without the knowledge of the pensioner, even if administratively justified, produces consequences far beyond the legal sphere.” The court added that such action “undermines the very object of providing pension to the retired employees, i.e. to secure the economic dignity and emotional stability in the post-retirement stage of life.”

Referring to the immediate financial distress caused to pensioners, Justice Brar asserted: “The predetermined plans on the basis of legitimate expectation of a certain amount of pension, suddenly become unfeasible. Moreover, pensioners often depend entirely on their monthly pension to meet essential household and medical expenses”.

Justice Brar added sudden deductions disturbed their financial equilibrium and might lead to “inability to meet healthcare needs or other basic expenses.”

The Bench added that the absence of prior communication also generated shock, anxiety, and a feeling of betrayal after long years of service. The court also linked the issue to institutional credibility by observing that such conduct eroded confidence in the fairness and credibility of the employer or government department and weakened the morale among both serving and retired employees.

The Bench warned that “arbitrary or un-communicated recoveries contradict the spirit of a welfare administration and demonstrate a lack of humane consideration,” reflecting on “the sensitivity, fairness, and accountability of governance itself”.

Dealing with the core legal questions raised in the matter, the court held that recoveries from pension after retirement required express consent under both sets of rules applicable to Punjab and Haryana. “The Note to Rule 2.2(a) of the Punjab Civil Services Rules explicitly stipulates that such recovery may be made from the pension only upon the request or with the express consent of the pensioner… no deduction can be effected from the pension.” Similarly, under Rule 11 of the Haryana Civil Services (Pension) Rules, 2016, “no such recovery shall be affected by a reduction of the pension except with the written consent of the pensioner.”

In the case in hand, the court found no such consent: “Admittedly, the petitioner had not given his express written consent to effect any recovery from his pension… any recovery from the petitioner’s pension in absence of his written consent would be arbitrary and illegal.”