A claim for family pension can be denied if the termination of employment was based on false documents and the challenge to that termination is barred by delay and acquiescence.

JUDGMENT :

Jyotsna Rewal Dua, J.

This writ petition has been filed for grant of following substantive relief :-

“(i) That the respondents may kindly be directed to grant family pension to petitioner from due date alongwith interest and arrears from the date of reckoning of the same after quashing the order dated 18.09.2021 and order dated 04.11.2004 attached with Annexure P-3.”

2. The Case
Following facts are not in dispute:-
2(i) The petitioner is wife of Sh. Bhikham Ram. Shri Bhikham Ram was engaged as daily wage Beldar in the respondent- Public Works Department in the year 1983-84. His services were regularized on 18.05.1995. The petitioner’s husband accepted his regularization order and joined his services as regular employee accordingly.
2(ii) While petitioner’s husband Sh. Bhikham Ram was in service, the respondents received complaint against him about his having furnished false ‘date of birth’ certificate at the time of regularization of his services. It is the stand of the respondents that after adopting all codal formalities, inquiry into this complaint was conducted. During inquiry, it came out that Bhikham Ram’s date of birth was recorded in the school register as 24.03.1941 but while joining services, his date of birth was entered in the service book as 24.03.1947 on the basis of a ‘date of birth certificate’ produced by him. The inquiry report established that date of birth certificate produced by Sh. Bhikham Ram, husband of the petitioner was fake and false; He had hidden true facts about his date of birth. An office order was issued on 5.8.2003 relieving Sh. Bhikham Ram from service by treating his date of birth as 24.03.1941. On the basis of said inquiry report, the competent authority came to the conclusion that Bhikham Ram had indeed furnished fake date of birth certificate to seek employment and as such, in exercise of powers under applicable provisions of Central Civil Services (Classification, Control & Appeal) Rules, the Executive Engineer, B & R Division, H.P.P.W.D, Division Dharampur, Tehsil Dharampur, District Mandi, H.P. issued an order on dated 04.11.2004 terminating services of Sh. Bhikham Ram from due date of his retirement i.e. with effect from 31.03.2001.
2(iii) Shri Bhikham Ram instituted O.A. No.3359/2003 seeking following substantive reliefs from the respondents including grant of pension from the date he was retired from government service:-

“(1) That the respondents be directed to grant pension to the applicant from the date on which the applicant has retired from government service on attaining the age of superannuation.
(2) That the respondents be directed to pass ex-post facto sanction before six years of applicant’s superannuation so that he may be eligible for pension and pensionary benefits.
(3) That Annexure A-1 passed against the provisions of law and natural justice may kindly be quashed and set- aside.
(4) That the applicant may be deemed to be in continuous service under the respondents taking the date of birth of the applicant as 24.03.1947 and in the alternative the applicant may kindly be paid all arrears of wages, salary etc. taking the date of birth of the applicant as 24.3.1947.” 

Pertinently, Sh. Bhikham Ram besides seeking quashing of order dated 05.08.2003 had also prayed for treating his date of birth as 24.3.1947 and for consequential benefits on that basis. Alongwith the reply the respondents placed on record documents concerning the inquiry conducted against the petitioner’s husband with respect to his date of birth and the consequential orders passed thereupon including the office orders dated 05.08.2003 and 04.11.2004.

2(iv) During pendency of original application, Sh. Bhikham Ram died on 20.04.2007. He was substituted by his legal representatives i.e. wife (the present petitioner), his daughter and two sons. The Original Application preferred by Bhikham was decided as CWP(T) No.9816/2008 on 17.12.2010 as under:-

“The petitioner was initially engaged on daily wage basis in the yea