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2009 Supreme(Raj) 594

[Citation : 2009(4) RLW 3195 (Raj.)]
(Rajasthan High Court)
Jaipur Bench
S.B.B.J. Vs. R.S. Verma (Parihar, J.)
HON'BLE ASHOK PARIHAR, J.
HON'BLE K.S. CHAUDHARI, J.
State Bank of Bikaner & Jaipur
Versus
R.S. Verma
D.B. Civil Special Appeal No. 683 of 2002, decided on 21.04.2009

Advocates Appeared
G.K. Garg, for Appellant;
S.D. Khaspuria with R.N. Mathur, for Respondent;
G.C. Garg with Alok Garg & Sonal Singh, for Respondent No. 2

Headnote:Service Matters and State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur Officers (Services) Regulations, 1979, Regulation 67-F — Punishment of compulsory retirement without pesionary benefits — Single Judge directed appellant to make payment of pension — Order of compulsory retirement not challenged in writ — Held — High Court does not have power to deviate from the relevant regulation and brush aside the legal position under the pretext of financial burden on the bank in absence of any specific power — Single Judge has only been swayed by the sympathetic compassionate consideration without referring to actual facts and relevant regulations applicable in the present case — Order of single judge is not sustainable in eye of law — Order of compulsory retirement has been challenged in separate writ petition which is pending — If the writ petition is allowed and compulsory retirement order is set aside by the competent Court, employee would be free for getting benefits from concerned authorities.

       Appeal allowed. (Paras 7 & 8)

        lsok ekeys ,oa LVsV cSad vkWQ chdkusj ,oa t;iqj vf/kdkjh ¼lsok,a½ fofu;e] 1979] fofu;e 67-p & isaku ifjykHkksa ds fcuk vfuok;Z lsok fuo`fr dh kkfLr & ,dy U;k;k/khk us vihykFkhZ dks isaku Hkqxrku djus dk funsZk fn;k & fjV esa vfuok;Z lsok fuo`fr ds vknsk dks pqukSrh ugha & vfHkfu/kkZfjr & mPp U;k;ky; fdlh fofk"V kfDr ds vHkko esa cSad ij foRrh; Hkkj ds feF;k rdZ ds vUrxZr fof/kd fLFkfr dks vikLr djus ,oa lqlaxr fofu;e ls gVkus dh kfDr ugha j[krk gS & mPp U;k;ky; orZeku ekeyk esa ykxw gksus ;ksX; lqlaxr fofu;eksa vkSj okLrfod rF;ksa dks fufnZ"V fd;s fcuk flQZ vuqdaik lgkuqHkwfr ds fopkj dh vksj izo`r gqvk & ,dy U;k;k/khk dk vknsk dkuwu dh n`f"V ls ;Fkkor j[kus ;ksX; ugha gS & vfuok;Z lsok fuo`fr ds vknsk dks i`Fkd fjV esa pqukSrh nh xbZ gS tks yafcr gS & ;fn ;kfpdk Lohdkj dh tkrh gS vkSj vfuok;Z lsok fuo`fr vknsk l{ke U;k;ky; }kjk vikLr fd;k tkrk gS] deZpkjh lacaf/kr izkf/kdkfj;ksa ls vko;d ifjykHk izkIr djus gsrq Lora= gksaxsA ¼in la[;k 7 o 8½

       vihy LohdkjA

JUDGMENT

Hon'ble PARIHAR, J.—After initiating disciplinary proceedings against respondent No. 1, the concerned employee, a memorandum of charges was issued to him on 16.6.1989. After holding a regular enquiry, seven charges have been proved fully and one partly proved out of 9 charges. An opportunity of hearing was given to the concerned employee after supplying a copy of enquiry report. Considering the representation made by the concerned employee, as per provisions of Regulation 67-F of the State Bank of Bikaner & Jaipur Officers (Service) Regulations 1979, a major penalty of compulsory retirement was imposed on the concerned employee vide order dated 31st May, 1991. In the punishment order it has further been mentioned that concerned employee shall not be entitled for any salary, allowance and other benefits for the period of suspension except for the subsistence allowance already paid.

2. Subsequently having denied pensionary benefits, a writ petition came to be filed before this Court on 15.3.97 with the following prayers:-

"(i) issue a writ order or direction in the nature thereof thereby quash and set aside the order dated 8.1.97 and 20.1.1997;

(ii) thereby held that petitioners is entitled for pension benefit and direct the respondents to extend the benefit of pension to the petitioner from the date he became entitle with interest;

(iii) any other order or direction which the Hon'ble Court deems fit and proper be also passed."

3. Relying on judgment of Supreme Court in case of Bank of India vs. Induraj Gopalan in Civil Appeal No. 6959/97 decided on 5.4.2000. Learned Single Judge while allowing the writ petition vide order dated 16.7.2002 directed the present appellant to make payment of pension within sixty days. Hence, the present appeal challenging the order dated 16.7.2002 passed by the learned Single Judge.

4. After hearing counsel for the parties, we have carefully gone through the record.

5. As has already referred, there is no dispute that the concerned employee was compulsorily retired by way of punishment as per Regulations of 1979. The order of compulsory retirement is not under challenge in the present writ petition. State Bank of Bikaner & Jaipur (Employees) Pension Regulations, 1995, first time came to be framed and made effective w.e.f. 29.9.95. As per provisions of Regulation No. 33 direction has been given to the Competent Authority to allow pensionary benefits to employee compulsorily retired from service as penalty. However, benefit is to be given only to the employees who have been retired after first day of November 1993. The cut-off date mentioned in Regulation No. 33 is also not under challenged in the present matter.

6. Learned counsel for the respondent employee with all vehemence at his command, relying on some Judgments of High Court and Apex Court, submitted that the matters of ordinary retirement, premature retirement and compulsory retirement by the way of major penalty should be treated at par and the employee should be granted benefit of pension in all eventualities. In our opinion, the submissions so made by the learned counsel for the respondent are wholly misconceived. It is only under a particular statute the benefit of pension and other retiral benefits can be granted to different category of employees under different circumstances and the courts do not interfere with such discretions of the authorities while framing regulation, as also granting benefit in appropriate cases as per regulations.

7. Learned Single Judge without referring to the facts of the case, has relied on judgment of Supreme Court in case of Bank of India vs. Indu Rajgopalan (supra). However, in our opinion, facts of the above case are entirely different. It was not a case of compulsory retirement by way of punishment and only a case of voluntary retirement, and further, in view of the concession made by the counsel of concerned Bank that there will not be much financial burden on Bank to pay pension the court without decid







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