Rabindra Nath Patra vs The State Of West Bengal & Ors
2022 Latest Caselaw 75 Cal

13th January, 2022
  (D/L No.23)
     (SKB)

                                      W.P.A. 19591 of 2021
                                      (Via Video Conference)

                                        Rabindra Nath Patra
                                                Versus
                                   The State of West Bengal & Ors.


                                   Mrs. Arpita Saha
                                                           ... for the petitioner.

                                   Ms. Tapati Samanta
                                                        ... for respondent no.4.

Affidavit of service filed in court today is kept with

the record.

The material facts of the case are admitted and

hence I have not called for affidavits.

The petitioner was a librarian of a Library in the

district of Howrah and he retired on 31.03.2017. The

first pension payment order was issued on 30.06.2017.

Under ROPA Rules, 2019 there was revision of the

pensionary and gratuity amount payable to the

petitioner. The revised pension payment order was

issued on 11.02.2021 and the arrear pension and

gratuity was disbursed on 01.11.2021 in terms of ROPA,

2019. The petitioner claims interest on delayed

payment of the revised arrear pension and revised

gratuity.

I have heard learned counsel for both parties and I

have considered the orders passed by this court in

similar facts. It is settled law that retired employee is

entitled to some amount of interest on delayed payment

of arrear pension and revised gratuity.

There is considerable delay in filing of the writ

petition, which the petitioner seeks to justify by stating

that there is no statutory period of limitation and

neither parties have suffered due to this delay. It is the

submission of the petitioner that accordingly the

petition should be allowed. The petitioner relies upon

an order in W.P.17557(W) of 2017 (Narayan Chandra

Saha Vs. State of West Bengal and others) wherein a

coordinate Bench had relied upon the Supreme Court

judgment in the case of Union of India Vs. Tarsem Singh,

reported in (2008)8 SCC 648 on the issue of limitation

relating to payment on refixation of pay or pension

wherein the Apex Court had held that relief may be

granted in spite of delay as it does not affect the rights

of the third party.

In view of the aforesaid, I direct the Director of

Pension, Provident Fund and Group Insurance,

Government of West Bengal as also the concerned

Treasury Officer to pay interest to the writ petitioner at

the rate of 8 per cent per annum on the revised arrear

pension and revised gratuity calculated on and from 1st

February, 2020 till actual date of payment. Such

payment is to be made within eight weeks from the date

of communication of the certified copy of this order to

the concerned authorities.

The writ petition is, accordingly, disposed of.

There will be no order as to costs.

Urgent photostat certified copy of this order, if

applied for, be made available to the parties upon

compliance of the requisite formalities.

(Moushumi Bhattacharya, J.)