Court Flags Failure to Follow Supreme Court Rulings

The Himachal Pradesh High Court has criticised the Director of the Animal Husbandry Department for rejecting an employee’s pension claim without properly considering relevant Supreme Court judgments. The court imposed costs of Rs 10,000 on the state after it sought additional time to reconsider the claim.

Justice Jyotsna Rewal Dua was hearing an execution petition filed by Puran Dass over the state’s failure to comply with a November 11, 2024, judgment concerning his pension entitlement.

The department had rejected Dass’s claim on the ground that he had not completed the minimum 10 years of qualifying service required under the Central Civil Services (Pension) Rules, 1972. However, the court observed that the director had apparently failed to examine the relevant judicial decisions, including the rulings in Sundar Singh and Balo Devi, which governed the consideration of his case.

According to the service calculation recorded by the authorities, Dass had completed seven years, two months and 25 days of regular service. Additionally, two years of qualifying service were counted for his eligible daily-wage employment, taking his total qualifying service to nine years, two months and 25 days.

Fresh Order Grants Pension Entitlement

The High Court took exception to the department’s decision to reject the claim despite acknowledging the employee’s qualifying service. It emphasised that the relevant Supreme Court rulings should have been considered while deciding his eligibility.

During the proceedings, Deputy Advocate General Seema Sharma sought additional time to submit a fresh order. The court allowed the request but directed the state to pay Rs 10,000 in costs to Dass. The amount was subsequently handed over through a bank draft.

On October 8, the department issued a fresh order extending the benefit of the relevant Supreme Court judgments to Dass and recognising his entitlement to pension from the due date.

The state assured the court that his admissible pension and any arrears would be released within four weeks. Taking note of the fresh order and the assurance, the High Court disposed of the execution petition while allowing Dass to pursue appropriate legal remedies for any remaining grievances.