Retirees are entitled to claim interest on delayed payment of retiral benefits, emphasizing constitutional rights and established judicial precedents.

Order :

FARJAND ALI, J.

1. The petitioner, who has retired from the post of Associate Professor in Mathematics and Statistics from the Jai Narain Vyas University, Jodhpur, has preferred the instant writ petition seeking a direction for the respondents to grant him interest on the delayed payment of retiral benefits, i.e. arrears of commutation, leave encashment and gratuity, at the rate of 6% per annum from the date of retirement till the date of payment, which comes to Rs.3.63 lacs.

2. Briefly stated, facts of the case are that the petitioner is retired Associate Professors in Mathematics & Statistics of Jai Narain Vyas University, Jodhpur. He retired from service on attaining the age of superannuation w.e.f. 31st July, 2008.

3. The State of Rajasthan introduced 6^th Pay Commission and accordingly the Governor of Rajasthan revised the existing scales of pay of the Vice-Chancellor, Professors, Readers/Associate Professors and Assistant Professors / Librarians etc and this was done w.e.f. 01.01.2006. In this regard, order was passed by the Education Department of Government of Rajasthan on 27.10.2009, which was communicated to the Vice-Chancellor of the respondent University.

4. Prior to retirement of the petitioner, the benefit of 6^th Pay Commission was ordered to be granted to him but no payment of arrears were released to him. His fixation. was also made under the 6^th Pay Commission w.e.f. 1st January, 2006 in the pay scale of Rs. 37400-67000, but he was not paid the arrears. After his retirement, he was also not issued the revised Pension Payment Order as well as gratuity. The benefits of Leave Encashment, commutation of pay were also not paid in accordance with the Revised Pay Scale under the 6^th Pay Commission.

5. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the controversy has already been set at rest by the Division Bench of this court in the case in DB Civil Writ Petition No. 1914/2010 titled as Retired Agriculture Lecturers Employees of Agriculture University V/s State of Rajasthan & Ors, decided on 24.9.2010, whereby it has been directed that the arrears of 6^th Pay Commission and consequential benefits should be paid to all the retired employees along with the interest @ 6% per annum. Subsequently, it has further been reiterated in the case of B.M. Chitlangi V/s State of Rajasthan & Ors, In SB Civil Writ Petition No. 11927/2010 decided on 19.4.2011 wherein same benefit has been ordered to all the incumbents of Jai Narain Vyas University, Jodhpur and the retired employees and for that purpose, the University as well as the State of Rajasthan were directed to release the funds for the purpose of making payment of all the arrears to the petitioners arising out of fixation under the implemention of recommendations of the of the 6^th Pay Commission within a period of one month from the date of receipt of certified copy of the order passed in the case of Retired Agriculture Lecturers Employees of Agriculture University (supra).

6. Pursuant to these orders, the petitioner was granted certain benefits but the payments were granted to him after a delay of certain period of time. So far as the gratuity is concerned, he was to be paid 10 lacs of Gratuity as on 01.08.2008 but the entire payment of Gratuity was released only on 20.10.2011. Some payment was released in the year 2009, but the entire payment was released on 20.10.2011. Therefore, the interest has to accrue on the payment of gratuity to the extent of approximately 1.52 lacs. Similarly commutation of pension has been paid after a delay of almost two years. Leave encashment and arrear