Service as part-time Village Assistant prior to 01.06.1995 cannot be counted for pension benefits, as it does not qualify under the Tamil Nadu Village Assistants Pension Rules for cadre posts.

ORDER :

M. DHANDAPANI, J.

The failure to count 50% of the service rendered by the petitioner as Part-Time Village Assistant for the purpose of pensionary benefits prior to the change of status of the petitioner as full-time Government Servant upon issuance of G.O. (Ms) No.625, Revenue Department, dated 06.07.1995 by regularising the service of Village Assistants from 01.06.1995 is put in issue through the present writ petition.

2. Before detailing the reasons which prevailed upon the learned single Judge to refer the matter to a Larger Bench, the point of reference, as has been formulated and placed before this Court for an authoritative answer, is as under:-

“Whether the 50% service rendered by the petitioner as part time Village Assistant has to be taken into account along with the regular service period to determine the pensionary benefits or not, as per the judgment dated 08.01.2010 of the Apex Court in SLP (CC) No.21683/2009.”

3. The scenario in which this reference has come to be placed before this Court needs to be briefly set out so as to have a better appreciation of the issue, based upon which this Court can deliberate and render opinion on the point of reference.

4. The writ petition was filed by the petitioner for seeking the indulgence of this Court to direct the respondents to pass orders on the representation of the petitioner for counting the service rendered by the petitioner as Village Assistant prior to regularisation of the services of the petitioner in the post of Village Assistant on 1.6.1995.

5. When the matter was placed for hearing before the learned single Judge (Battu Devanand, J.), the learned counsel for the petitioner and the respondents placed countering decisions with regard to the entitlement of Village Assistants to have the period prior to 1.6.1995 to be counted for the purpose of pensionary benefits. The submissions advanced by the learned counsel on either side has been captured as under by the learned single Judge :-

“2. Learned counsel for the petitioner has drawn the attention of this Court to the G.O.(Ms) No.33, Revenue [Ser-8(1)] Department dated 25.01.2010 and would submit that, in the light of the judgment dated 08.01.2010 rendered by the Apex Court in S.L.P.(CC) No.21683 of 2009, which was filed against the judgment dated 16.02.2009 in W.A.(MD)No. 16 of 2009, a Division Bench of Madurai Bench of Madras High Court in an identical matter, issued the said G.O.. to grant pension to the petitioner therein, taking into account of his entire period of service from 21.07.1995 and the petitioner also seeking the same relief in the present writ petition.

2.1. Learned counsel for the petitioner also relied on the judgment dated 22.10.2019 in W.A.(MD) No.370 of 2019 rendered by a Division Bench of Madurai Bench of Madras High Court wherein, it is directed to pass orders counting 50% of the services of the appellant put in by him as Thalayari for the period from 07.01.1983 to 31.05.1995 for the purpose of calculation of pension along with regular services put in by him as Village Assistant.

3.On the other hand, the learned Additional Government Pleader appearing for the respondents has placed reliance on the judgment in W.A.(MD) No. 1629 of 2018 and batch, dated 26.02.2021 passed by a Division Bench of Madurai Bench of Madras High Court and judgment in W.A.(MD) No.1631 of 2021 and batch dated 30.11.2023, would submit that the petitioner is not entitled for the relief sought in the present writ petition f