Whereas a message is circulating in the social media (whats-app) reading as under:-
“V. Raghunath Sharma started this petition to Ministry of Finance and Indian Bankers Association.
I refer to the landmark judgment of the supreme court in special leave petition No 20661-20668/2012 .where in the “Supreme court upholds the definition of Pay as per Bank employees’ pension regulation 1995 for calculation of pension in the judgment pronounced on 13-02-2018 vide canara bank v/s Savitri Venugopal and others.
Among other things the court has observed the following which are relevant to the bank employees who retired after November 2012. :
1) There cannot be two pay scales 1) one for the purposes of calculation of salary and 2) the other for calculation of pension.
In other words the pay taken for the calculation of salary should be reckoned for the purpose of pension also..........”
This judgement relates to pensioners retired between 01-04-1998 and 30.04.2005. Please refer AICBRF circular dated 22.05.2018, for ready reference. The above message is raising false hopes in the minds of post Nov’2012 retirees. let’s examine the issue threadbare. It’s genesis lies in 10th Bipartite Settlement / joint note for officers, both dated 25.05.2015, of which relevant portions reads as under.
‘Quote’
Tenth Bipartite Settlement :(Agreement dated 25.05.2015)
# 9. Special Allowance
With effect from 1.11.2012, workmen employees shall be paid Special Allowance at 7.75% of the Basic pay with applicable DA thereon.
Note : The Special Allowance with applicable DA thereon shall not be reckoned for superannuation benefits viz., pension including contribution to NPS, PF & Gratuity.
Joint Note for Officers Dated 25.05.2015
# 6. Special Allowance (w.e.f. 1.11.2012)
With effect from 1.11.2012, officers shall be paid Special Allowance as under:
Scale I-III - 7.75% of Basic Pay + applicable Dearness Allowance thereon
Scale IV-V - 10% of Basic Pay + applicable Dearness Allowance thereon
Scale VI-VII- 11% of Basic Pay + applicable Dearness Allowance thereon
Note : The special allowance with applicable DA thereon shall not be reckoned for superannuation benefits, viz., pension including NPS, PF and Gratuity
This special allowance was “carved” out of basic pay portion and given a new nomenclature with intention to deprive / curtail the pension benefits of the pensioners ( pensioners are not a party to negotiated settlements, issues of pensioners gets sacrificed , in order to secure a better deal for the serving employees) This is not the first time that UFBU had agreed with the management to curtail the benefits of the retirees, details of other instances are as follows.
1. Seventh Bipartite Settlement :(Agreement dated 27.03.2000)
# 16. Pension
In relation to an employee who retires or dies while in service on or after the 1st day of April, 1998 ‘Pay’ for the purpose of Pension shall be the aggregate of the pay drawn by the member of award staff in terms of the sixth Bipartite Settlement dated 14th, February, 1995 and the dearness allowance thereon calculated upto index number 1616 points in All India Average Consumer Price Index for Industrial Workers in the series 1960=100. This shall be subject to the necessary amendments to be made to the relevant provisions of Bank (Employees) Pension Regulations, 1995.
By the above settlement , the pension of retirees , retiring w.e.f. 01.04.1998 was reduced by app.15%. This anomaly was corrected under Eighth Bipartite w.e.f. 01.05.2005, but arrears were not given. Retirees had to fight a long legal battle ending with Supreme Court of India orders dated 13.02.2018, and finally partial arrears were released by the banks in April / May 2018..
2. Under the following retrograde clause (with retrospective effect) of Ninth Bipartite Settlement (Agreement dated 27.04.2010), 100% DA Neutralization was denied for pensioners who retired prior to Nov’2002.
Ninth Bipartite Settlement; (Agreement dated 27.04.2010)
# 3. Further to Clause 7(2) of the Bipartite Settlement dated 2nd June 2005, it is agreed between the parties as under:
(i) On and from 1.5.2005, in the case of employees who retired during the period 1.4.1998 to 31.10.2002, dearness relief shall be payable for every rise or be recoverable for every fall, as the case may be, of every 4 points over 1684 points in the quarterly average of the All India Average Consumer Price Index for Industrial Workers in the series 1960=100. Such increase or decrease in dearness relief for every said four points shall be calculated in the manner given below:
Whereas vide agreement dated 02.05.2005 ( Eighth Bipartite Settlement) Concept of 100% DA neutralization for all pay levels ( subordinate / clerical / officer ) was introduced with effect from 1st February 2005, but vide agreement dated 27/03/2010 ( Ninth Bipartite Settlement), 100% DA Neutralization was denied, with retrospective effect , for pensioners who retired prior to Nov’2002, thus creating two classes amongst the bank pensioners.
Class 1. Bank pensioners getting 100% DA Neutralization
Class 2. Pre Nov'2002 bank retirees pensioners getting partial DA Neutralization
Despite established case law, in the famous judgement of Supreme Court of India in D.S. Nakara Vs Union of India, that two classes amongst the pensioner can not be created, retirees lost the case in Supreme Court of India.
In the 100% DA Neutralization case Kolkata High Court in the orders dated 26.09.2016, had observed -
“V. Raghunath Sharma started this petition to Ministry of Finance and Indian Bankers Association.
I refer to the landmark judgment of the supreme court in special leave petition No 20661-20668/2012 .where in the “Supreme court upholds the definition of Pay as per Bank employees’ pension regulation 1995 for calculation of pension in the judgment pronounced on 13-02-2018 vide canara bank v/s Savitri Venugopal and others.
Among other things the court has observed the following which are relevant to the bank employees who retired after November 2012. :
1) There cannot be two pay scales 1) one for the purposes of calculation of salary and 2) the other for calculation of pension.
In other words the pay taken for the calculation of salary should be reckoned for the purpose of pension also..........”
This judgement relates to pensioners retired between 01-04-1998 and 30.04.2005. Please refer AICBRF circular dated 22.05.2018, for ready reference. The above message is raising false hopes in the minds of post Nov’2012 retirees. let’s examine the issue threadbare. It’s genesis lies in 10th Bipartite Settlement / joint note for officers, both dated 25.05.2015, of which relevant portions reads as under.
‘Quote’
Tenth Bipartite Settlement :(Agreement dated 25.05.2015)
# 9. Special Allowance
With effect from 1.11.2012, workmen employees shall be paid Special Allowance at 7.75% of the Basic pay with applicable DA thereon.
Note : The Special Allowance with applicable DA thereon shall not be reckoned for superannuation benefits viz., pension including contribution to NPS, PF & Gratuity.
Joint Note for Officers Dated 25.05.2015
# 6. Special Allowance (w.e.f. 1.11.2012)
With effect from 1.11.2012, officers shall be paid Special Allowance as under:
Scale I-III - 7.75% of Basic Pay + applicable Dearness Allowance thereon
Scale IV-V - 10% of Basic Pay + applicable Dearness Allowance thereon
Scale VI-VII- 11% of Basic Pay + applicable Dearness Allowance thereon
Note : The special allowance with applicable DA thereon shall not be reckoned for superannuation benefits, viz., pension including NPS, PF and Gratuity
This special allowance was “carved” out of basic pay portion and given a new nomenclature with intention to deprive / curtail the pension benefits of the pensioners ( pensioners are not a party to negotiated settlements, issues of pensioners gets sacrificed , in order to secure a better deal for the serving employees) This is not the first time that UFBU had agreed with the management to curtail the benefits of the retirees, details of other instances are as follows.
1. Seventh Bipartite Settlement :(Agreement dated 27.03.2000)
# 16. Pension
In relation to an employee who retires or dies while in service on or after the 1st day of April, 1998 ‘Pay’ for the purpose of Pension shall be the aggregate of the pay drawn by the member of award staff in terms of the sixth Bipartite Settlement dated 14th, February, 1995 and the dearness allowance thereon calculated upto index number 1616 points in All India Average Consumer Price Index for Industrial Workers in the series 1960=100. This shall be subject to the necessary amendments to be made to the relevant provisions of Bank (Employees) Pension Regulations, 1995.
By the above settlement , the pension of retirees , retiring w.e.f. 01.04.1998 was reduced by app.15%. This anomaly was corrected under Eighth Bipartite w.e.f. 01.05.2005, but arrears were not given. Retirees had to fight a long legal battle ending with Supreme Court of India orders dated 13.02.2018, and finally partial arrears were released by the banks in April / May 2018..
2. Under the following retrograde clause (with retrospective effect) of Ninth Bipartite Settlement (Agreement dated 27.04.2010), 100% DA Neutralization was denied for pensioners who retired prior to Nov’2002.
Ninth Bipartite Settlement; (Agreement dated 27.04.2010)
# 3. Further to Clause 7(2) of the Bipartite Settlement dated 2nd June 2005, it is agreed between the parties as under:
(i) On and from 1.5.2005, in the case of employees who retired during the period 1.4.1998 to 31.10.2002, dearness relief shall be payable for every rise or be recoverable for every fall, as the case may be, of every 4 points over 1684 points in the quarterly average of the All India Average Consumer Price Index for Industrial Workers in the series 1960=100. Such increase or decrease in dearness relief for every said four points shall be calculated in the manner given below:
Class 1. Bank pensioners getting 100% DA Neutralization
Class 2. Pre Nov'2002 bank retirees pensioners getting partial DA Neutralization
Despite established case law, in the famous judgement of Supreme Court of India in D.S. Nakara Vs Union of India, that two classes amongst the pensioner can not be created, retirees lost the case in Supreme Court of India.
In the 100% DA Neutralization case Kolkata High Court in the orders dated 26.09.2016, had observed -
“# 9. As rightly argued by Mr. Lakshmi Kumar Gupta the learned Counsel appearing for the retired employees it is impermissible to make any classification between retirees depending on the date on which they retire. In the case of D. S. Nakara (supra) the Supreme Court observed that the Government was perfectly justified in introducing the pension scheme as it was long overdue but the Court found that there was no justification for arbitrarily selecting two criteria for eligibility of the benefits of the scheme dividing the pensioners, all of whom would be on either side of the cut-off specified date. Mr. Gupta submitted that the observations in D. S. Nakara’ case (supra) are applicable to the facts and circumstances in the present case. He has also drawn our attention to the judgment in Kallakkurichi Taluk Retired Officials Association, Tamil Nadu & Ors and vs. State of Tamil Nadu reported in (2013) 2 SCC 772 where the Supreme Court has frowned upon the State Government treating pensioners differently with respect to disbursement of dearness relief.
# 15………..There does not appear to be any objective sought to be achieved by the classification of retired employees on the basis of their date of retirement. The retirees of post-November, 2002 have been granted dearness relief which allows for 100 per cent neutralization. However, those who have retired between 1st April, 1998 and 31st October, 2002 have been denied this relief.”
But Supreme Court of India did not find the merits in the judgement of Kolkata High Court and retirees lost the case in SCI.
My idea of detailing the above is to emphasize that, the principles of natural justice ,case laws etc. etc. does not matter, what matters is the wisdom of all the concerned, starting from UFBU, bank management, govt. bureaucracy and lastly of courts.
UFBU has failed to recognize that present serving employees are the future retirees and retirees interests also needs to be protected, rather UFBU had been instrumental in curtailing the benefits of retirees, for the gains of the serving employees.
Bank managements needs to adopt humane approach towards retirees issues, be it pension or health care etc. Most of the banks have not released the arrears of commutation to the pensioners in terms of Supreme Court of India orders dated 13.02.2018, mentioned supra above, despite clear cut provisions in the pension regulations ( regulation 41.6). Now the concerned retirees, mostly above the age of 75 years ( retired prior to Nov’2002.), will have either to approach the courts, or forgo the arrears.
Indian bureaucracy still has the mindset of occupier state, British Raj, even after 70 years of independence. They are still strangers to the concept of welfare state and take sadistic pleasure in denying the rightful benefits. They should have a humane and equitable approach while framing or amending pension regulations of bank retirees, as they protect their own pension rights and benefits.
Going back to the issue of pension on Special Allowance, which was conceptualized in the 10th bipartite, is concerned, it’s a long battle, which may have to be fought by the concerned retirees as no help will be forthcoming from any quarter. They will be lucky to get their dues in their lifetime.
Disclaimer: The sole purpose of this blog is to create awareness on the subject and must not be used as a guide for taking or recommending any action or decision. A reader must do his own research and seek professional advice if he intends to take any action or decision in the matters covered in this blog.
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