Pension Regulations For Army Applicable To Defence Security Corps Service, Delhi HC Allows Condonation Of Shortfall In Service For Pension Benefits

A division bench of the Delhi High Court comprising of Justice Rekha Palli & Justice Shalinder Kaur, while deciding a writ petition held that the Pension Regulations for the Army, 1961 are also applicable to DSC service, hence allowed the condonation of shortfall in DSC service for the pension benefits.

Background Facts

The employee served in the Indian Army for 23 years, from January 26, 1980, to February 1, 2003. Having completed over 15 years of service, he was eligible for and had been receiving a service pension for his Army service. After his retirement from the Army, employee was enrolled in the Defence Security Corps (DSC) on July 8, 2003. He served in the DSC for 14 years, 2 months, and 21 days, until his superannuation on September 30, 2017.

Under the Pension Regulations for the Army, 1961 (PRA of 1961), the qualifying service period for pension eligibility in the DSC is 15 years. However, employee's service in the DSC fell short by 280 days, making him ineligible for DSC pension. The employee approached the Armed Forces Tribunal, seeking condonation of the shortfall of 280 days in his qualifying service in the DSC, as permitted under Paragraph 125 of the PRA of 1961, which allows for condonation of up to 12 months of shortfall in service.

The Armed Forces Tribunal allowed employee's plea and condoned the shortfall in his service, granting him eligibility for the DSC pension. The Tribunal based its decision on previous rulings, holding that the provisions for condonation of shortfall in service under the PRA of 1961 and the PRA of 2008 were applicable to DSC personnel. Aggrieved by the same, the Union of India filed a writ petition challenging the Tribunal's decision.

The primary contention of the Union of India was that the provisions for condonation of shortfall in qualifying service, as provided under Paragraph 125 of the Pension Regulations (PRA of 1961), were not applicable to personnel serving in the Defence Security Corps (DSC). They argued that the DSC is a separate entity from the Indian Army, with distinct rules governing its personnel. Therefore, the provisions allowing for condonation of shortfall in qualifying service for Army personnel should not extend to those in the DSC.

It was further contended by the UOI that service in the DSC is distinct from service in the Indian Army, and the two cannot be combined for pension purposes. They argued that employee had already been granted a pension for his 23 years of service in the Indian Army, and his subsequent service in the DSC should be treated separately.

On the other hand, it was argued by the employee that the right of the respondents to receive two service pensions flows out of the Regulations itself, like paragraph 266 of the PRA of 1961 and paragraph 173 of the PRA of 2008, clearly provide that all the provisions of the Pension Regulations would be applicable to the service in the DSC. The provisions for condonation of shortfall in service, as contained in paragraph 125 of the PRA of 1961 and paragraph 44 of the PRA of 2008 would be applicable to the DSC service.

It was further contended by the employee that merely because the respondents, if granted condonation in DSC service, would draw a second service pension, the UOI cannot be permitted to urge that the provisions for condonation of shortfall would not be applicable for service in the DSC.

Findings of the Court

It was observed by the court that from a bare perusal of the clauses of both PRA of 1961 and PRA of 2008, it is evident that the respondent employee was correct in urging that all the provisions of the Pension Regulations, unless they are found to be inconsistent with Chapter VIII of PRA, 2008 and Chapter IV of PRA, 1961, would be equally applicable to the service in the DSC.

It was further observed by the court that except for making a bald statement that the condonation of shortfall in service is not applicable to service in the DSC, the UOI did not even point out any express provision in the Chapters dealing with the DSC service that bars condonation of shortfall in qualifying service.

It was observed by the court that when no inconsistency between the provisions for condonation and the provisions dealing with the DSC service has been pointed out, the UOI cannot contend that the provisions of paragraph 125 of the PRA of 1961 and paragraph 44 of the PRA of 2008, which provide for condonation of shortfall in service, would not be applicable to the service in DSC.

The provisions of Paragraph 125 of the PRA, 1961, were examined by the court, which allowed for condonation of shortfalls in qualifying service up to a maximum of one year (12 months). It was found that the employee's shortfall of 280 days fell within the permissible limit for condonation under the Pension Regulations, thus it was allowed by the court.

With the aforesaid observations, the writ petition filed by the Union of India was dismissed.

Title: UNION OF INDIA & ORS.v. EX/NK CHINNA VEDIYAPPAN

Citation: 2024 LiveLaw (Del) 1043

Case No. : W.P.(C) 2986/2024

Counsel for the Petitioners : Shekha, CGSC, Raj Kumar Maurya & Krishna Chaitanya, Advocates

Counsel for the Respondents : Praveen Kumar, Advocate

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