Pratima Das vs (Sb) The State Of West Bengal & Ors
2022 Latest Caselaw 3692 Cal

Court No. 13                          W.P.A. 10608 of 2022
29.06.2022

(Item No. 422) Pratima Das VS (SB) The State of West Bengal & Ors.

Mr. Banshi Badan Maity ...... for the petitioner

Mr. Dipankar Ghosh ......... for the State

The issue to be decided in the present writ

petition is whether an employee will be entitled to receive

pension on and from the date following retirement or from

the date of refund of the employer's share of contribution.

The husband of the petitioner retired from

service on attaining the age of superannuation on

31.01.1997 and died on 28.04.2018.

In response to the notification published by the

School Education Department being No. 79-SE(L)/SL/5S-

56/13(Pt-V) dated 13th June, 2014 issued in compliance of

the direction passed by the Hon'ble Special Bench of this

Court in the judgment dated 16th July, 2013 in the matter

of District Inspector of Schools (S.E.), Kolkata -vs- Abhijit

Baidya the petitioner exercised option to switch over from

CPF to GPF and refunded the employer's share of

contribution with interest and additional interest on

22.09.2014.

Pension Payment Order was issued in favour of the

petitioner with effect from the date of refund of the

employer's share of contribution.

The petitioner claims that pension ought to have

been released on and from the next date of retirement and

not from the date of refund of the employer's share of

contribution.

A similar issued has been decided by this Court in

the matter of WPA No. 964 of 2022 (Sitala Mandal

(Chaudhuri) -vs- State of West Bengal & Ors.).

As the teacher died in the meantime, accordingly,

the revised pension payment order is required to be issued

in favour of the heir of the deceased employee.

Instant writ petition is disposed of by directing the

Director of Pension, Provident Fund and Group Insurance

and the concerned Treasury Officer to verify the records,

and in the event, it is found, that the husband of the

petitioner exercised option and refunded the employer's

share of contribution within the time specified in the

notification dated 13th June, 2014, then steps shall be

taken to issue Revised Pension Payment Order in favour of

the petitioner with effect from the date following the date of

retirement of her husband on superannuation and to

release the pension in accordance with the Revised Pension

Payment Order. Such steps shall be taken within a period

of twelve weeks from the date of communication of a copy

of this order. Payment shall positively be released

immediately upon issuance of the Revised Pension

Payment Order.

Affidavit of service kept with the record.

The writ petition stands disposed of.

Urgent certified photo copy of this order, if applied

for, be supplied to the parties expeditiously on compliance

of usual legal formalities.

(Rajasekhar Mantha, J.)