IN THE HIGH COURT AT CALCUTTA CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION APPELLATE SIDE Present:-

The Hon’ble Justice Madhuresh Prasad And The Hon’ble Justice Prasenjit Biswas F.M.A. 1809 of 2018 Haradhan Datta & Ors.

Vs.

State of West Bengal &Ors.

The Appellant (No. 1)-in-Person : Mr.HaradhanDatta. For the Appellant Nos. 2 to 54 : Mr.NitishSamanta, Mr.AbhivabaDan, Ms.ShreyasheeMitra.

For the State : Mr.AmalKr.Sen,Ld.AAG, Mr.L.Basu.

For the SBSTC : Mr.AyanBanerjee, Ms.DebasreeDhamali, Ms.DebolinaGhosh.

Judgment on :March30,2026.

Madhuresh Prasad, J.:

1. The present appellants were the writ petitioners before the learned Single Judge. The appellant shall hereinafter be referred to as the petitioners. The petitioners are all retired employees of the South Bengal State Transport Corporation (in short “SBSTC”).

2. The relief was prayed in the writ petition in the following terms:

"(a) A writ in the nature of Mandamus commanding the respondents and their men, agents and subordinates to implement the pensionary benefits as specified in the SBSTC Employees Pension Regulation, 2002 in favour of the petitioner immediately;

(b) A writ in the nature of Mandamus commanding the respondents and their men, agent and subordinates to pay all arrear dues on pension head to the petitioners after adjustment of the returnable amount if any from the payable amount as arrear after exercising option form each of them;

(c) A writ in the nature of Mandamus commanding the respondents and their men, agent and subordinates to pay the pension including arrear pension in favour of the petitioners in terms of the spirit of the judgment and subsequent order passed by the Hon'ble High Court and Hon'ble Supreme Court as well as in terms of the decision taken by the SBSTC Board in its 125th meeting dated June 10th 2010 to implement the Pension Regulation, 2002 in the line of North Bengal State Transport Corporation/Calcutta State Transport Corporation immediately;"

3. For the benefit of the employees of the SBSTC, The SBSTC Employees’

Pension Regulation 2002 was framed. The Board of SBSTC on 08.04.2003 decided not to implement the Pension Regulation 2002 since only 189 retired employees of SBSTC opted for the scheme.

4. It was contended by the petitioners that the petitioners raised a grievance that the 2002 regulation was not at par with the pension regulations applicable to State Government employees. The petitioners sought modification of the 2002 pension regulations accordingly. It is not in dispute that the petitioners did not opt for benefit under the

2002 Regulations.

5. The decision of the SBSTC not to implement the 2002 Regulation was challenged by 60 retired employees of the Corporation, other than the petitioners. W.P. No. 13475 (W) of 2003 filed by the 60 retired employees was disposed of by a judgment and order dated 25.04.2008, in the following terms:

"36. Considering all material facts and on considering the respective affidavits of the parties and having regard to the findings and observations as above, writ application, accordingly, succeeds.

37. It is ordered that writ petitioners and all the retired employees who opted the Pension Regulations, 2002are entitled to get the benefits of death-cum-retirement benefits in terms of the South Bengal State Transport Corporation Employees' Pension Regulations, 2002. The respondents are directed to take steps for release of the pension and other death-cum-retirement benefits in terms of the said Regulations, 2002 by implementing the Pension Regulations, 2002 in respect of the writ petitioners and the other employees who opted such Pension Regulations, 2002(emphasis supplied) by releasing their all arrears amount of pension and other dues within four months from this date and to start to release the pension by issuing Pension Payment Order in terms of the Pension Regulations, 2002 within two months from this date. A compliance report to be submitted by the respondent corporation through its Managing Director to the High Court registry by