Murshida Bibi And ORS. v. State Of West Bengal And ORS.

06.10.2023 Item No.41 Court No.18 AJ.

W.P.A. 23451 of 2023 Murshida Bibi & Ors.

-Vs- The State of West Bengal & Ors.

Mr. Sourav Mitra, Ms. Sreyasree Choudhury.

......for the petitioners.

Affidavit-of-service filed by the learned advocate for the petitioners be kept with the record.

None appears on behalf of the State respondents in spite of service.

The father of the petitioners was an approved Assistant Teacher of a secondary school and retired from his said service on superannuation on March 31,2006 and died on July 03, 2020.

The petitioners are claiming that their father had exercised option to switch over to Pension-cum-Gratuity from CPF-cum-Gratuity refunded employer's share contribution with interest additional interest within time limited by notification of the Government of West Bengal bearing No. 749-SE(L)/SL/5S-56/13(Pt-V) dated June 13, 2014.

The grievance of the petitioners is that the Pension Payment Order was issued with effect from the date of the aforesaid refund, instead from the date following the date of retirement of the employee concerned on superannuation.

The petitioners by the instant writ petition are praying for issuance of a writ of mandamus commanding the respondents to release the arrear family pension from the date following such date of retirement of the employee concerned.

In view of the judgment of the Special Bench of this Court in the case of DISTRICT INSPECTOR OF SCHOOLS(SE), KOLKATA vs.

ABHIJIT BAIDYA reported in 2013(3) CHN (CAL) in view subsequent clarification of some of the paragraphs of the said judgment by the Special Bench in its order dated September 30, 2019 on G.A. 464 of 2018, the issue is no longer res integra.

The concerned District Inspector of School (SE) is directed to verify records expeditiously to ascertain as to whether the employee concerned had exercised the said option and refunded the employer's share of contribution within the time limited by the aforesaid notification dated June 13, 2014.

In the event, it is found that the said option was so exercised, the said authority shall process the claim of the petitioners for arrears of family pension and shall forward the necessary recommendation and/or sanction to the Director Pension, Provident Fund Group Insurance, who, in turn, shall take steps to issue Revised Pension Payment Order in favour of the petitioners with effect from the date following the date of retirement of the employee concerned on superannuation concerned Treasury Officer, thereafter shall release the pension in accordance with the Revised Pension Payment Order.

Entire exercise in this regard is required to be completed within a period of twelve weeks from the date of communication of this order. W.P.A. 23451 of 2023 stands disposed of with the above directions. There shall be no order as to costs.

Urgent photostat certified copy of this order, if applied for, be supplied to the parties subject to compliance with all requisite formalities.

(Biswajit Basu, J.)