Mohennegar Bibi Alias Begum @ Maharnegar Bibi v. State Of West Bengal And ORS.

19.03.2021.

W.P.A. 7440 of 2021 ab Ct. 15 Mohennegar Bibi @ Begum Vs The State West Bengal & Ors. Mr. Abdus Salam ... For the Petitioner.

Mr. Anubrata Santra ... For the State.

Affidavit of service filed in Court today is kept with the record.

The petitioner's husband was an Assistant Teacher of a Primary School, who retired from service on 30.09.2001 and died on 17.02.2003. The petitioner's husband had completed all pension-related formalities. The pension payment order was issued on 12.11.2002. However, the concerned authorities delayed and released the gratuity amount on 10.03.2003. The petitioner herein seeks interest to be paid on the gratuity amount for the interim period of delay in receipt of the gratuity amount.

There is a considerable delay in filing of the writ petition, which the petitioner seeks to justify by stating that there is no statutory period of limitation and neither parties have suffered due to this delay. It is the submission of the petitioner that accordingly the petition should be allowed.

The petitioner relies upon an order dated October 25, 2017 passed in W.P. No. 17557 (W) of 2017 (Narayan Chandra Saha Vs. State of West Bengal &

Ors.) wherein a co-ordinate Bench of this court had relied upon a Supreme Court judgement in the case of Union of India Vs. Tarsem Singh, reported in (2008) 8 S.C.C. 648 on the issue of limitation relating to payment or re-fixation of pay or pension wherein the Apex Court had held that relief may be granted in spite of delay as it does not affect the rights of the third party. In view of the above and after hearing the learned Counsel for the parties, I direct the Director of Pension, Provident Fund and Group Insurance, Government of West Bengal as also the concerned Treasury Officer to pay interest to the petitioner @ 8% per annum on the gratuity amount calculated from 01.10.2001 till the date of payment. Such payment is to be made within a period of eight weeks from the date of communication of this order.

The writ petition is disposed of, however, no order as to costs.

Since no affidavit is called for, the allegations made in the writ petition are deemed to have been denied.

Urgent certified website copy of this order, if applied for, be made available to the parties upon compliance with the requisite formalities.

(Rajarshi Bharadwaj, J.)