* IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI Reserved on: 09^th March, 2026 Pronounced on: 16^th April, 2026 Uploaded on: 16^th April, 2026 + W.P.(C) 7270/2019 RAM RATAN VERMA AND ORS. .....Petitioners Through: Mr. Shailendra Singh and Mr.

Abhyuday Dhasmana, Advocates.

versus THE UNION OF INDIA AND ORS. .....Respondents Through: Mr. Manoj and Ms. Aparna Sinha, Advocates for R-2.

Dr. Monika Arora, CGSC with Mr. Prabhat Kumar, Advocate for R-1, 3, 4.

CORAM:

HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE SANJEEV NARULA

JUDGMENT

SANJEEV NARULA, J.:

1. This writ petition has been filed by retired direct recruits of the Food Corporation of India, “FCI” seeking a mandamus directing the Respondents to grant them the benefit of pension on the footing that they were wrongly excluded from the regime available to the employees who had come into FCI from the erstwhile Food Department. The claim is founded essentially on parity and discrimination.

2. FCI was established in the year 1965. The FCI Staff Regulations came into force in the year 1971. According to the Petitioners, employees recruited prior to the coming into force of those Regulations were initially governed by the Central Civil Services Rules., “CCS Rules” They further sta