Judicial Analysis Court Copy Headnote Facts Arguments Court observation

2026 Supreme(SC) 312

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
MANOJ MISRA, MANMOHAN, JJ.
Union of India & Ors. – Appellants
Versus
Balakrishnan Mullikote (EX HAV 256812 M) – Respondents
Civil Appeal No. 3708 of 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 27246 of 2023) With Civil Appeal No. 3709 of 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 10617/2018) Civil Appeal No. 3710 of 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 38229/2018) Civil Appeal No. 5199 OF 2023 Civil Appeal No. 3711 of 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 30477/2023) Civil Appeal No. 3712 of 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 48314/2023) Civil Appeal No. 3713 of 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 1818/2024) Civil Appeal No. 3714 of 2026 (Arising out of SLP(C) No. 27725/2024) Civil Appeal No. 3715 of 2026 (Arising out of SLP(C) No. 11632/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3716 of 2026 2026 (Arising out of SLP(C) No. 32319/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3717 of 2026 (Arising out of SLP(C) No. 32321/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3718 of 2026 (Arising out of SLP(C) No. 33255/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3719 of 2026 (Arising out of SLP(C) No. 32320/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3720 of 2026 (Arising out of SLP(C) No. 32795/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3721 of 2026 (Arising out of SLP(C) No. 33679/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3722 of 2026 (Arising out of SLP(C) No. 34652/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3723 of 2026 (Arising out of SLP(C) No. 34253/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3724 of 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 57276/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3725 of 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 58071/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3726 of 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 59355/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3727 of 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 62611/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3728 of 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 58829/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3729 of 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 60221/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3730 of 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 62330/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3731 of 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 63679/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3732 of 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 64995/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3733 OF 2026 (Arising out of SLP(C) No. 38559/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3734 OF 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 64337/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3735 OF 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 62372/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3736 OF 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 65005/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3737 OF 2026 (Arising out of SLP(C) No. 510/2026) Civil Appeal No. 3738 OF 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 69413/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3739 OF 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 65163/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3740 OF 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 69726/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3741 OF 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 70272/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3742 OF 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 60220/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3743 OF 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 62616/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3744 OF 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 69755/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3745 OF 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 69735/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3746 OF 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 73216/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3747 OF 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 64998/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3748 OF 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 60026/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3749 OF 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 73198/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3750 OF 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 73265/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3751 OF 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 73886/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3752 OF 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 64456/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3753 OF 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s).73224/2025) Civil Appeal No. 3754 OF 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s).65002 /2025) Civil Appeal No. 3755 OF 2026 (Arising out of Diary No(s). 69733 /2025)
Decided On : 24-03-2026

Advocates appeared:
For the Appellant(s) : Ms. Aishwarya Bhati, A.S.G. Mr. Vikramjit Banerjee, A.S.G. Ms. Archana Pathak Dave, A.S.G. Mr. Abhishek Jain, Adv. Ms. Sweksha, Adv. Mr. Pramod Vishnoi, Adv. Mr. Raghav Sharma, Adv. Mr. Vaibhav Dwivedi, Adv. Mr. Kamal Digpaul, Adv. Mr. K Parameshwaran, Sr. Adv. Mrs. Ruchi Kohali, Sr. Adv. Mr. Mukesh Kumar Maroria, AOR Mr. Ashok Panigrahi, Adv. Ms. Vaishnav Kirti Singh, Adv. Mr. Sanjay Kumar Tyagi, Adv. Ms. Ankita Chaudhary Rathi, Adv. Ms. Divya Jyoti Singh, Adv. Mr. Jagdish Chandra Solanki, Adv. Ms. Harshita Choubey, Adv. Mr. T.S.Sabrish, Adv. Ms. Ankita Chodhary Rathi, Adv. Ms. Shreya Jain, Adv. Mr. Kamal Rattan Digpaul, Adv. Mr. Sunit Choudhary, Adv. Mrs. Chitrangda Rastaravara, Adv. Mr. Advitya Awasthi, Adv. Mr. Aman Shukla, Adv. Mr. Rajeev Kumar Ranjan, Adv. Mr. Abhinav Mishra, Adv. Mr. Rajeev Kuamr Ranjan, Adv. Mr. Udit Dedhiya, Adv. Mrs. Megha Karanwala, Adv. Ms. Shivika Mehra, Adv. Mr. Bhakti Vardhan Singh, Adv. Mr. Jagdsih Chandra, Adv. Mr. Mohan Prasad Gupta, Adv. Mr. M.p. Gupta, Adv. Mr. Sridhar Potaraju, Adv. Ms. Astha Singh, Adv. Ms. Priyanka Tyagi, Adv. Mrs. Astha Singh, Adv. Mr. Digvijay Dam, Adv. Mr. Raman Yadav, Adv. Ms. Neelakshi Bhadauria, Adv. Mr. Aditya Kashyap, Adv. Mr. Rohit Pandey, Adv. Mr. Prasanjeet Mahapatra, Adv. Mrs. Alka Agarwal, Adv. Mr. Ishaan Sharma, Adv. Mr. Ishan Kapoor, Adv. Ms. Sthavi Asthana, Adv. Mr. Sayooj Mohandas, Adv. Mr. M.P Gupta, Adv. Mr. Gaurang Bhushan, Adv. Mr. Vivek Gupta, Adv. Mr. Gaurang, Adv. Mr. Jagdish Chandra, Adv. Ms. Seema Bengani, Adv. Mr. Merusagar Samatray, Adv. Mr. Madhav Sinhal, Adv. Ms. Preeti Rani, Adv. Mr. Advitiya Awasthi, Adv. Mr. Kamal Digpaul, Adv. Mr. Santosh Kumar, Adv.
For the Respondent(s): Mr. Rakesh Kumar Singh, AOR Mr. Shudhanshu S Pandey, Adv. Mr. Devendra Kumar, Adv. Mr. Raj Kumar, Adv. Mr. Ravi Kumar, Adv. Mr. Brajesh Kumar, Adv. Mr. Bimlesh Kumar Singh, AOR Mr. Rabin Majumder, AOR Ms. Mousumi Roy, Adv. Mr. Joydeep Mukherjee, Adv. Mr. Dusmanta Kumar Pradhan, Adv. Mr. Shivam Majhi, Adv. Ms. Sakshi Mehley, AOR Mr. Mohan Raj, Adv. Ms. Charulata Chaudhary, AOR Mr. Tansukh Rai, Adv. Ms. Shaily Jain, Adv. Mr. Jaswant Singh Rawat, AOR Mr. Banvendra Singh Gandhar, Adv. Ms. Simran Singh Parihar, Adv. Mr. Sohaib Alam, Adv. Mr. Ranjeet Singh, Adv. Mr. Abhaya Nath Das, Adv. Mr. Mohd Yasin, Adv. Ms. Monica Goel, Adv. Mr. Nitish Pande, Adv. Mr. Sarthak Udaipuria, Adv. Ms. Mahesh Sharma, Adv. Ms. Sonika Gill, Adv. Mr. Abhinav, Adv. Ms. Sitara Yadav, Adv. Ms. Sarita Verma, Adv. Mr. Satish Hooda, Adv. Mr. Gourav Dixit, Adv. Mr. Satish Kumar, AOR Ms. Jagrati Singh, AOR Ms. Archana Ramesh, Adv. Mr. Rajpal, Adv. Mr. Surendar Kumar, Adv. Mr. Omprakash, Adv. Mr. R. S. Meena, Adv. Mr. Sonu, Adv. Mr. Jaswant Singh Rawat, AOR Mr. Prabhash Kumar Singh, Adv. Mr. Ajeet Yadav, Adv. Mr. M. Arifi, Adv. Mr. Praveen Kumar, Adv. Mr. Davender Rawat, Adv. Mr. Abhishek Upadhayay, Adv.

Defence Security Corps personnel are entitled to condonation of service shortfall for pension eligibility under the same provisions applicable to Regular Army personnel, irrespective of specific interpretations imposed through governmental letters.

Headnote:(A) Pension Regulations for the Army, 1961 and 2008 - Paragraphs 9, 18, 125 and 44 - Eligibility for second service pension - Court examined whether DSC personnel can seek condonation of shortfall in qualifying service - Emphasized that pensionary provisions applicable to Regular Army extend to DSC personnel unless specific provisions are inconsistent - Ruling that amalgamation of past military service not necessary for pension - Governed by regulations, the Ministry of Defence letters cannot amend existing regulations. (Paras 47, 48, 51)

(B) Defence Security Corps - Treatment of personnel and their pensionary benefits - The court affirmed the right of DSC personnel to condonation of service shortfalls just like their regular army counterparts. (Paras 33, 36)

(C) Condonation of service - Court clarified, the intention behind regulatory provisions allows for condonation of shortfall for eligibility to a second service pension. (Paras 12, 40, 51)

Facts of the case:
The appeals involve individuals from the Defence Security Corps seeking second service pensions, which were denied on grounds of insufficient qualifying service; the case centers on the interpretation of applicable pension regulations and their application to the DSC personnel.

Findings of Court:
The court upheld that provisions for the condonation of shortfall in service apply to DSC personnel and reinforced that letters from the Ministry cannot override established pension regulations.

Issues: The court addressed whether the Union of India is bound to give effect to specific pension regulations and whether personnel can seek condonation of service shortfalls for pension eligibility.

Ratio Decidendi: The court reasoned that the existing pension regulations provide for the condonation of service deficiencies up to 12 months regardless of differing provisions for DSC personnel, emphasizing that all personnel should be treated equitably in terms of their pension rights.

Result: Appeals dismissed.

Table of Content
1. preliminary procedural rulings. (Para 1 , 2 , 3)
2. identification of substantial legal questions. (Para 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10)
3. arguments by the appellants regarding pension regulations. (Para 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23)
4. responses to prior legal interpretations. (Para 24 , 25 , 26)
5. legal categorization of dsc personnel. (Para 27 , 28 , 29 , 30)
6. provisions for condonation of service shortfalls. (Para 31 , 32 , 33)
7. clarity on existing pension rules. (Para 34 , 35 , 36)
8. consistency in pension eligibility rulings. (Para 37 , 38 , 39)
9. recap of judicial consensus. (Para 40 , 41)
10. final decision and order. (Para 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 51)

JUDGMENT :

MANMOHAN, J.

1. Delay condoned.

2. Leave to appeal granted.

3. Applications for intervention / impleadment are allowed.

THE TWO SUBSTANTIAL QUESTIONS OF LAW

4. The two substantial questions of law that arise for consideration in this batch of appeals are:

A. Whether the Union of India, through the Ministry of Defence, is bound to give effect to Paragraphs 9 and 18 of the Pension Regulations for the Army, 1961 (hereinafter referred to as ‘Pension Regulations, 1961’) and Pension Regulations for the Army, 2008 (hereinafter referred to as ‘Pension Regulations, 2008’) respectively, as well as Note 5 appended to the letter dated 30th October 1987, while determining the length of qualifying service of personnel serving in the Defence Security Corps (hereinafter referred to as ‘DSC’) and

B. Whether such personnel are entitled to seek condonation of deficiency in the qualifying period of service for the purpose of pension eligibility in accordance with Paragraph 125 of the PENSION REGULATIONS , 1961 and Paragraph 44 of the PENSION REGULATIONS , 2008.

ARGUMENTS ON BEHALF OF THE APPELLANTS

5. Ms. Archana Pathak Dave, learned Additional Solicitor General of India stated that the present batch of matters fall into two distinct categories: one involving a shortfall in qualifying service of less than one year and the other involving shortfall exceeding one year. She has handed over a chart indicating shortfall in service of each of the Respondents. The relevant portion of the said chart is reproduced hereinbelow:-

Sl.No.	Case No	Particulars of the individual	QS for Regular Army/First Service	Date of Re Enrollment in DSC	Date of Discharge from DSC	AQS for 2nd Service Pension	Shortfall for 2nd Service Pension
1	2	3	4 (Y/M /D)	5	6	7 (Y/M /D)	8 (Y/M /D)
1	Diary No 27246 /2023	Ex Hav Balakrishanan Mullikote	22/00/02	24.08.1994	31.05.2008	13/09/08	01/02/22
2	Diary No 10617 /2018	Ex Nb Sub Ram Chander Disodia	19/01/18	20.09.1983	31.05.1997	13/08/11	01/03 /19
3	Diary No 38229 /2018	Ex Sep Kanshi Ram	18/06/00	22.12.1986	29.02.2000	13/10/14	01/01/16
4	Diary No 27300 /2023	Ex Nk K Boja Rajan	22/00/00	24.03.2006	29.02.2020	13/11/05	01/00/25
5	Diary No 30477 /2023	Ex Nk Govindan Kutty MC	19/01/13	22.12.1999	31.11.2013	13/11/09	01/00/21
6	Diary No 48314 /2023	Ex Nk Daljit Singh	24/00/02	23.04.2007	31.01.2021	13/09/08	01/02/22
7	Diary No.1818/2024	Ex Sub Ved Prakash	24/00/00	26.06.1992	31.05.2006	13/11/05	01/00/25
8.	SLP(C) 27725 /2024	Ex NK Chinna Vediyappan & 344 ors	22/00/06	08.07.2003	30.09.2017	14/02/22	00/09/08
9	SLP(C)N o.11632/2 025	Ex Nk Babu Ram	17/00/00	02.08.2006	30/06/2021	14/10/28	00/01/02
10	SLP(C) No.32319 /2025	Ex Nk Shyam Lal	24/00/00	29.02.2008	31.07.2022	14/05/03	00/06/27
11	SLP(C) No.32321 /2025	Ex Hav Mam Raj sharma	16/03/04	10.10.2008	29.02.2023	14/04/18	00/07/12
12	SLP(C) No.33255 /2025	Ex Lnk Jage Ram	15/00/29	03.01.1986	31.10.2000	14/09/28	00/02/02
13	SLP(C) No.32320 /2025	Ex Nk Bhaskar Jankiram Shinde	16/01/19	22.03.2005	30.04.2019	14/01/09	00/1

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Judicial Analysis

2026 Supreme(SC) 312

Defence Security Corps personnel are entitled to condonation of service shortfall for pension eligibility under the same provisions applicable to Regular Army personnel, irrespective of specific interpretations imposed through governmental letters.

Cases Referred (7)

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