THE HON'BLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE ALOK ARADHE
AND
THE HON'BLE SRI JUSTICE N.V.SHRAVAN KUMAR
WRIT APPEAL No.1099 of 2010
JUDGMENT: (Per the Hon'ble the Chief Justice Alok Aradhe)
Mr. M.Rama Krishna, learned counsel representing
Mr. Gadi Praveen Kumar, learned Deputy Solicitor General
of India for the appellants.
2. This intra Court appeal emanates from the order
dated 25.08.2003 passed by the learned Single Judge by
which the writ petition preferred by respondents No.1 to 4,
namely W.P.No.24709 of 1999, has been disposed of with a
direction to the appellants herein to release the pension
and arrears of pension within a period of four weeks.
3. Facts
giving rise to filing of this writ appeal briefly stated are that respondents No.1 to 4 are freedom fighters. They were sanctioned pension with effect from 01.08.1980 under the Freedom Fighters Pension Scheme, 1972. However, by a communication dated 21.03.1990, the 2 payment of pension was stopped on the ground that on an enquiry by the Central Bureau of Investigation, it was found that they have obtained sanction order by playing fraud. Thereupon, a criminal case was registered against them, namely C.C.No.189 of 1988. The Court of V Metropolitan Magistrate, Hyderabad, vide judgment dated 30.05.1996, convicted the accused for the offences under Sections 120-B, 410, 468 and 471 of IPC. On appeal, the appellate Court, vide judgment dated 15.04.1997, has acquitted the accused. The operative portion of the judgment passed by the appellate Court reads as under:
In the result, Criminal Appeal Nos.197/96 and 198/96 are allowed. The convictions and sentences passed by the Lower Court against the appellants/accused (A-1, A-3 to A-8, A-11 and A-12) in these appeals are set aside and they are acquitted of all the charges. Their bail bonds are cancelled and they are set at liberty. Criminal Appeal No.204/96 and Appeal No.208/96 are dismissed. The convictions and sentences passed by the lower court against the appellants (A-10 and A-9) in these two appeals are confirmed.3
4. Admittedly, the aforesaid order of acquittal has attained finality as the appellants have not assailed the same before a higher forum.
5. Thereupon, respondents No.1 to 4 have filed the writ petition in which a direction was sought to the appellants herein to release the pension.
6. The learned Single Judge, by the impugned order dated 25.08.2003, has directed the appellants herein to release the pension and arrears of pension within a period of four weeks. The appellants also filed an application seeking review of the order, which was dismissed by the learned Single Judge by an order dated 09.02.2005. In the aforesaid factual background, this intra Court appeal has been filed.
7. Learned counsel for the appellants submitted that the learned Single Judge grossly erred in directing the appellants to make payment of pension to respondents No.1 to 4. It is also submitted that the order passed by the 4 learned Single Judge is contrary to the law, weight of evidence and probabilities of the case.
8. We have considered the submissions made by learned counsel for the appellants.
9. It is not in dispute that respondents No.1 to 4 have been acquitted by the appellate Court vide judgment dated 15.04.1997. It is also not in dispute that the aforesaid judgment has attained finality, as the same has not been challenged by the appellants in any higher forum. Therefore, the action of the appellants herein to withhold the pension, which was sanctioned to respondents No.1 to 4 cannot be said to be justified in law. The learned Single Judge has rightly directed the appellants to release the pension, which is due to respondents No.1 to 4.
10. For the aforementioned reasons, we do not find any merit in this writ appeal. The same fails and is hereby dismissed.
5
Miscellaneous applications pending, if any, shall stand closed. However, there shall be no order as to costs.
______________________________________ ALOK ARADHE, CJ ______________________________________ N.V.SHRAVAN KUMAR, J 19.10.2023 vs