The exclusion of initial Muster Roll service from pension calculations is arbitrary; such period must be included for qualifying service, with judgments made retroactive in nature.

JUDGMENT :

MANISH CHOUDHURY, J.

1. Heard Mr. B.J. Mukherjee, learned counsel for the petitioner; Mr. N. Upadhyay, learned Standing Counsel, Irrigation Department for the respondent no. 1; Mr. A. Chaliha, learned Standing Counsel, Finance Department for the respondent no. 2; Ms. M. Bhattacharjee, learned Additional Senior Government Advocate, Assam for the respondent no. 3 and Mr. B. Sharma, learned Standing Counsel, Accountant General [A&E], Assam for the respondent no.4.

2. The case of the petitioner, in brief, is that that petitioner was engaged initially as a Muster Roll Helper in the Dhubri Division of the Irrigation Department in 1989 w.e.f. 01.12.1989. Pursuant to a Government Letter no. IGN[E]/104/2003/198 dated 03.10.2005 and the Finance Department’s Letter no. FFS[II]1/2005/66 dated 22.08.2005, the service of the petitioner came to be regularized by an Office Order No. GID/1/E-74/05/5 dated 06.10.2005 issued under the hand of the Executive Engineer, Dhubri Division, Irrigation Department [Annexure-1] w.e.f. 22.07.2005 in the scale of pay mentioned therein. The petitioner stated that he had rendered continuous and unblemished service for a period of more than 28 years and 4 months. The petitioner has further stated that he retired from service 31.03.2018 on reaching the age of superannuation. The petitioner has further stated that he had rendered service as a Muster Roll employee out of his 28 years and 4 months for 16 years continuously till 22.07.2005 of service and the remaining period since 22.07.2005 till 31.03.2018 as a regular employee.

3. After his retirement on superannuation, papers were forwarded to the office of the respondent no. 4 to the departmental authorities for calculation of the pension and other retirement benefits. The petitioner had received the Pension Payment Order [PPO] in due course. By the Pension Payment Order [PPO], the petitioner was granted an amount of Rs. 10,310/- as monthly pension amount. According to the petitioner, the monthly pension amount ought to have been worked out at Rs. 11,681/-. The basis of the petitioner’s claim is that while working out the pension amount and the other retirement benefits, the respondent authorities including the respondent no. 4, had excluded the initial period of six years the petitioner had rendered service as a Muster Roll employee. The petitioner has further stated that such deduction of initial period of six years’ service has been held to be bad and arbitrary by a judgment rendered by this Court. The petitioner made an application before the respondent authorities to make a correct assessment of his pension amount on the basis of his last pay treating the entire service period of more than 28 years and 4 months rendered by the petitioner since his initial engagement. The respondent no. 4 had denied such claim by an Office Letter dated 09.01.2024 addressed to the petitioner. As such assessment, sought for by the petitioner, has not been made in the subsequent period, the petitioner is before this Court by the instant writ petition.

4. It is the case of the petitioners that vide an Office Memorandum no. PPG[P]88/2009/2 dated 20.05.2009 of the Pension and Public Grievances Department, Government of Assam, it was decided to exclude initial period of six years from past services rendered by Muster Roll Workers for the purpose of working out pension and death-cum-retirement gratuity. The said Office Memorandum dated 20.05.2009 was put to challenge in a batch of writ petitions including [ Sanjita Roy vs. State of Assam and others , W.P.