ARMED FORCES TRIBUNAL, REGIONAL BENCH, JAIPUR

22.

OA No 166/2022 with MA No 240/2022 No-13964624 Ex Sep Badal Singh, S/o Ram Singh, R/o Village-Tilagi Ka Gaur, Post-Godacika, Gaon, Via-Bhum, Distt-Rajsamand (Raj) …. Applicant Versus

1. Union of India, through Secretary, Department of Ex-

Servicemen Welfare, Ministry of Defence, New Delhi - 110011

2. PCDA (P), Allahabad (UP)-211014

3. Chief Record Officer, Sena Chikitsa Corps Abhilekh, …. Respondents AMC Records, Lucknow (UP) - 900450 For Applicant : Mr OP Sheoran, Advocate For Respondents : Mr Brij Bihari Sharma, Advocate CORAM:

HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE GOVERDHAN BARDHAR, MEMBER (J)

HON’BLE MR. SANJIV MITTAL, MEMBER (A)

O R D E R

06.10.2025 MA No 240/2022

1. MA No 240/2022 been filed for condonation of delay in filing the OA. For the reasons stated in the Application and also the fact that pension is a recurring cause of action, MA No 240/2022 is allowed.

OA No 166/2022

2. By way of this Application under Section 14 of the Armed Forces Tribunal Act 2007, the Applicant has prayed for grant of Disability Element of Disability Pension along with Rounding Off Benefits wef 15.03.1997 and that the arrears be paid along with interest @ 18% per annum.

3. Brief facts of the case as enunciated by the Applicant are that, the Applicant was enrolled in the Army on 24.09.1985. While in Service, the Applicant suffered from Disabilities, viz., (i) “Alcohol Abuse Deliberate Self Harm” and (ii) “Ununited Fracture of (Rt) Carpal Scapnoid”. He was placed in low medical category and, consequently, after rendering more than 11 years of service, he was invalided out of service on medical grounds on 14.03.1997. The duly constituted Invaliding Medical Board assessed his Composite Disability @ 20% for two years but the MA (P) at PCDA (P) arbitrarily assessed his disability @ 15-19% for five years from 16.01.1997 to 15.01.2002 and was not granted Disability Element of Disability Pension. Subsequent Re-Survey Medical Board held on 21.10.2004 opined that the disability was static since holding of Invaliding Medical Board, however, without any justifications, assessed his disability @ 15-19% for life wef 16.01.2002. The Applicant submits that he suffered from the disabilities due to strain and stress of military service and, hence, he is eligible for grant of Disability Element of Disability Pension. In support of his claim, the Applicant placed reliance on the judgments of Hon’ble Supreme Court in the case of Sukhvinder Singh Vs UOI & Ors, (2014) STPL 468 SC and UOI & Ors Vs Ram Avtar, (2014) SCC Online 1761 and submitted that he is eligible for grant of Disability Element of Disability Pension along with Rounding Off Benefits to 50% from the date of his discharge from Service. The Applicant made various representations as also issued Legal Notice for grant of Disability Pension, but to no avail. Therefore, the aggrieved Applicant has filed present OA.

4. The Respondents filed a detailed reply to the Application and while not disputing the basic facts presented by the Applicant, they have submitted that ID (i) ie., “Alcohol Abuse Deliberate Self Harm” was assessed @ 1-5% and was opined as Neither Attributable to Nor Aggravated by Military Service (NANA) and ID (ii), ie., “Ununited Fracture of (Rt) Carpal Scapnoid” was assessed @ 15-19% considered as Aggravated by Military Service and his Composite Disability was assessed @ 20% for two years. The MA (P) at PCDA (P) assessed his disability @ 15-19% for five years from 15.03.1997 to 15.01.2002. The Disability Pension claim of the Applicant was rejected by PCDA (P), the qualifying disability being below 20%. The subsequent RSMB assessed his disability @ 15-19% for life wef 16.01.2002. Since the disability qualifying for grant of Disability Pension was assessed below 20%, the Applicant is not eligible for grant of Disability Element of Disability Pension in terms of Rule 173 of Pension Regulations for the Army, 1961 (Part-1). The Respondents have placed reliance on Hon’ble Supr