Pension Benefits To Upgraded Posts Can Be Granted Even Post-Retirement: Punjab & Haryana High Court

The Punjab & Haryana High Court has directed to revise the pension of a retired Inspector General of Police, based on the pay scale of the upgraded Director-General of Police post.  

The Court observed that if the person opted for pre-mature retirement from a post and after that the said post is upgraded, he will still be entitled to the pension benefits granted to the new upgraded post.

Justice Sureshwar Thakur and Justice Sudeepti Sharma said, "It categorically underlined thereins that even when any officer is appointed on an ex-cadre post, thereupon he is entitled to equivalent pay, perks and status of the cadre post. Therefore, even if the present appellant was holding an ex cadre post at the time when he sought his voluntary retirement yet when in terms of the above hereinabove extracted rules, he became entitled to all the pay, perks and status attaching to the cadre post i.e Inspector General of Police, Punjab."

On February 20, 1980, the Akali government in Punjab was dismissed, and the appellant, B.S Dhanewal and was directed to be transferred from the post of Inspector-General to a non-cadre position. Danewalia took premature retirement on June 5, 1980,  before a major shift in the Punjab police system.

In 1982, after Danewalia's retirement, the Punjab government introduced the post of Director-General of Police, which was an upgrade from the position of Inspector-General. The new post was effective from July 16, 1982, and an officer junior to Danewalia, was appointed to the position.

Danewalia submitted that had he not retired prematurely, he would have been the first officer to assume the position of Director-General of Police upon his normal retirement age of 58 in 1983. The same would have entitled him to the higher pay scale and benefits attached to the upgraded position, he added.

After examining the submissions, the Court relying on Agia Ram and others vs. Union of India and Others, 2012 (1) SCT 540 said that, "the principle that even when a post is substituted and though on the date of upgradation of the post, the person who were earlier adorning the post, which subsequently became upgraded but had retired, on such substitution/upgradation taking place, yet the benefit of the subsequently upgraded post but cannot be snatched from those persons who were earlier thereto adorning the apposite post concerned, that is, of the Inspector General of Police."

"Even if the present appellant had sought pre-mature retirement on 05.06.1980, but yet in case if he had not sought pre-mature retirement and would have been normally superannuated on 03.08.1983, that is the date, when the post of Inspector General of Police, which he was earlier occupying, thus subsequently became upgraded on 16.07.1982, qua the fullest beneficient effect of the upgradation of the said earlier post of Inspector General of Police, to the post of Director General of Police, but was prima facie to be assigned to the present appellant, thus irrespective of the fact that he had taken pre-mature retirement," added the Court.

In the light of the above, the Letter patent appeal was allowed and the Court directed the authorities to re-fix the pensionary benefits vis-a-vis the present appellant w.e.f 01.01.1986 along with interest @ 6 % per annum.

Mr. Rajiv Atma Ram, Sr. Advocate with Mr. Sandeep Kumar, Advocate for the appellant.

Mr. Maninder Singh, Sr. DAG, Punjab.

Title: B.S. Danewalia (since deceased) through LR v. State of Punjab and Ors

Citation: 2024 LiveLaw (PH) 411

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