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HIGH COURT OF SIKKIM
Jitendra Kumar Maheshwari, CJ.
Ram Bahadur Das - Appellant
Versus
State of Sikkim & Ors. - Respondents
WP (C) No. 19/2021
Decided On : 21-07-2021
JUDGMENT
The petitioner has filed this petition seeking direction for commanding respondent no.2 to pay the subsistence allowance from the month of June, 2019 to till date to the petitioner with a further prayer to issue any appropriate writ, order or direction.
The facts leading to decide the controversy and relief as prayed are relevant, wherein the petitioner was placed on suspension on 27.08.2001 on account of registration of Criminal case against him under Section 420 , 467, 468 and 471 of INDIAN PENAL CODE . In a criminal trial he was convicted vide judgment dated 18.11.2005 passed by the Judicial Magistrate, East Sikkim. In Appeal before the Session Court the said order was affirmed and on filing the Revision, the High Court vide order dated 07.06.2013 modified only the sentence part, confirming the findings to prove charge. A Special Leave Petition was also preferred before the Hon’ble Supreme Court CRLMP No.23558- 23559/2014 which was dismissed on 05.12.2014.
Thereafter, the Department has decided to take action as per the provision of Rule 7 of the Sikkim Government Service (Discipline and Appeal) Rules, 1985. It is relevant to note that the petitioner attained the age of superannuation on 28.02.2017. For the reasons best known by the department the subsistence allowance was paid to the petitioner up to May, 2019 even after retirement. Now when the petition was filed seeking direction to pay the subsistence allowance, the department came to pass an order dated 30.06.2021 retiring the petitioner compulsorily with effect from 28.02.2017.
In view of the foregoing facts, it is clear that after attaining the age of superannuation on 28.02.2017 the petitioner cannot get subsistence allowance because the master servant relationship ceased on the date on which he has attained the age of superannuation, these prayers as made in the Writ Petition cannot be granted.
Counsel for the petitioner has strenuously urged that he must be paid the pension after the date of compulsorily retirement but the said issue is not the subject matter of this case looking to the grievance and relief prayed. In view of the foregoing, it is open to the petitioner to take recourse of law as permissible but in the present case no direction can be issued.
In view of foregoing, in my considered opinion, the relief prayed for by the petitioner cannot be granted, accordingly, this Writ Petition is dismissed.
Subsistence allowance ceases upon superannuation as the master-servant relationship is terminated at that point, and issues regarding pension are outside the writ's scope.
The legal principle established is that a public authority must consider representations regarding entitlements such as subsistence allowance, especially when no prejudice would result from such cons....
A civil servant under suspension is entitled to normal subsistence allowance even after conviction by the trial court pending consideration of his appeal until the appeal is disposed of finally.
Suspended employees are entitled to subsistence allowance as a matter of right, and proper disciplinary proceedings must be initiated post-conviction under Rule 17(c).
The legal principle established is that a government servant reinstated after acquittal from a criminal case is entitled to have the period of absence, including suspension, treated as duty for all p....
Co-operative society by-laws cannot restrict statutory rights to subsistence allowance for suspended employees under the Payment of Subsistence Allowance Act regardless of retirement status.
An employee under suspension is entitled to subsistence allowance even if convicted, unless he accepts employment elsewhere.
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