Bombay High Court
Smt. Vanita Wd/O. Chandrashekhar ... vs The State Of Maha., Thr. Principal ... on 12 April, 2016
Bench: V.A. Naik
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY,
NAGPUR BENCH : NAGPUR
Writ Petition No. 963 of 2016
Petitioners : 1. Smt Vanita wd/o Chandrashekhar Nistane,
aged about 62 years, Occ: Housewife, resident
of Ward No. 1, Gurudeo Nagar, Tivsa, District
Amravati
2. Smt Padmatai wd/o Laxmansingh Thakur, aged
about 65 years, Occ: housewife, resident of Ward
No. 1, Gurudeo Nagar, Tivsa, Dist. Amravati
3. Smt Mayatai wd/o Arunrao Gandhe, aged
about 54 years, Occ: Housewife, resident of
Ward No. 4, Gurudeo Nagar, Tivsa, District
Amravati
4. Smt Sushila wd/o Panditrao Kanetkar, aged
about 67 years, Occ: Housewife, resident of
Ward No. 3, Gurudeo Nagar, Tivsa, Dist. Amravati
5. Smt Kautukabai wd/o Suryabhan Gosavi,
aged about 60 years, Occ: Housewife, resident of
ward No. 4, Gurudeo Nagar, Tivsa, Dist. Amravati
6. Smt Vimal wd/o Prabhakarrao Vanve, aged
about 59 years, Occ: Housewife, resident of Ward
No. 4, Gurudeo Nagar, Tivsa, Dist. Amravati
7. Smt Suman wd/o Arvind Pande, aged about
83 years, Occ: Housewife, resident of Ward No.4,
Gurudeo Nagar, Tivsa, District Amravati
8. Smt Vimal wd/o Bhujangrao Vidhale, aged
about 90 years, Occ: Housewife, resieent of
Ward No. 1, Gurudeo Nagar, Tivsa, District
Amravati
9. Smt Krushnabai wd/o Mahadeorao Bobde,
aged about 67 years, Occ: Housewife, resident
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Ward No. 1, Gurudeo Nagar, Tivsa, District
Amravati
10. Smt Kausalyabai wd/o Ramraoji Banait,
aged about 76 years, Occ: Housewife, Ward
No. 1, Gurudeo Nagar, Tivsa, Dist. Amravati
11. Smt Shashikala wd/o Manoharrao Bhende,
aged about 42 years, Occ: Housewife, resident
of 42, Near Renuka Mangal Karyalaya, Prabhat
Nagar, Yavatmal
versus
Respondents :
1. The State of Maharashtra, through its
Principal Secretary, Department of Medical
Education and Drugs, Mantralaya, Mumbai
2. Director of Ayurved, having its Office
4th Floor, Government Dental College Bldg.,
St. George Hospital, Campus, Mumbai
3. Shri Gurudeo Ayurved Mahavidyalaya
& Rungnalaya Hospital, Gurukunj Ashram,
through its Principal, Mozri, Tahsil Tivsa,
District Amravati
4. Dayabhai Majithiya Ayurved College,
through its Principal, Arni Road, Yavatmal
Smt Tejaswini Khade, Advocate for petitioners
Shri P. S. Tembhre, Assistant Government Pleader for respondents no. 1 & 2
Shri V. B. Bhise, Advocate for respondent no. 3
Shri Rahul Dhande, Advocate for respondent no. 4
Coram : Smt Vasanti A. Naik And
V. M. Deshpande, JJ
Dated : 12th April 2016
Oral Judgment (Per Smt Vasanti A. Naik, J)
Rule. Rule made returnable forthwith. The writ petition is heard
finally with the consent of the learned counsel for the parties.
2. By this petition, the petitioners who are widows of the teaching and non-
teaching employees in the respondent nos. 3 and 4-Ayurved Colleges, have sought a
declaration that the petitioners are entitled to the family pension as their husbands
were entitled to the benefit of Pension-cum-Gratuity Scheme as per the Government
Resolution dated 21.7.1983. The petitioners have sought a direction to the
respondents to implement the Government Resolution dated 17.1.2015 and grant
family pension to the petitioners. The petitioners also seek a direction to the
respondent nos. 3 and 4 to forward the pension papers of the petitioners to the
respondent no. 2, so that the family pension could be paid to the petitioners, at the
earliest.
3. It appears that the husbands of the petitioners were working as
teaching and non-teaching staff in the respondent nos. 3 and 4 Institutions during
their lifetime. Since the Pension-cum-Gratuity Scheme was not made applicable to
the employees of the Ayurvedic Colleges, Writ Petition bearing No. 5771 of 2011 was
filed by the Association of Employees of the Ayurvedic Colleges for a declaration that
the employees of the Ayurvedic Colleges are also entitled to the benefits of the
Pension-cum-Gratuity Scheme as per the Government Resolution dated 21.7.1983.
The said writ petition and several others were decided by a common judgment and
order dated 10.6.2013 and it was held that the petitioners that were appointed on or
before 31.10.2005 in the Ayurvedic Colleges would be entitled to the benefit of
Pension-cum-Gratuity Scheme. After holding so, the Court issued necessary directions
to the Government to process the cases of the employees within a period of six months
as the employees appointed before 31.10.2005 were to be governed by the Pension-
cum-Gratuity Scheme and the employees appointed after the said date, are governed
by the new defined of Contributory Pension Scheme.
4. The learned counsel for the petitioners submitted that the petitioners
are the widows of the employees that had rendered services in the respondent nos. 3
and 4-Ayurvedic Colleges. It is stated that in view of the decision rendered by this
Court in a bunch of writ petitions bearing Writ Petition No. 5771 of 2011 and others,
the petitioners are entitled to a declaration that they are entitled to receive family
pension as they are the widows of the employees that worked with the respondent
nos. 3 and 4 Ayurvedic Colleges and were held to be entitled to the benefits of the
pension-cum-gratuity scheme. Hence, in view of the decision rendered by this Court in
a bunch of writ petitions bearing Writ Petition No. 5771 of 2011 and others, the
petitioners have sought a declaration that they are entitled to get family pension as
they are the widows of the employees that worked with the respondent nos. 3 and 4
Ayurvedic Colleges.
5. Shri P. S. Tembhre, the learned Assistant Government Pleader appearing
on behalf of the respondent nos. 1 and 2 does not dispute that in terms of the
judgment dated 10.6.2013 in a bunch of writ petitions bearing Writ Petition No. 5771
of 2011 and others, the benefits of Pension-cum-Gratuity Scheme are payable to the
employees that were appointed in the Ayurvedic Colleges before 31.10.2005. It is
also not disputed that the Government has issued Resolution dated 17.1.2015
providing for the benefits of Pension-cum-Gratuity Scheme to the employees of the
Ayurvedic Colleges within a time-frame.
6. Shri Bhise and Shri Dhande, the learned counsel appearing for the
respondent nos. 3 and 4 respectively do not dispute that the husbands of the
petitioners were employees of the respondent nos. 3 and 4 Ayurvedic Colleges.
7. In view of the aforesaid and for the reasons recorded in the judgment
dated 10.6.2013 in a bunch of writ petitions bearing Writ Petition No. 5771 of 2011
and others as also the Government Resolutions dated 21.7.1983 and 17.1.2015, we
allow this writ petition and direct the respondent nos. 3 and 4 to forward the family
pension cases of the concerned petitioners to the respondent no. 2 within a period of
two months. The respondent no. 2 is directed to decide the pension cases and pay
the family pension to the petitioners from the date prescribed in the Government
Resolution dated 17.1.2015, within a period of two months from the date of receipt
of the respective pension cases from the respondent nos. 3 and 4.
Rule is made absolute in the above terms with no order as to costs.
V. M. DESHPANDE, J SMT VASANTI A. NAIK, J
joshi
