C.K. Razdan vs Municipal Corporation Of Delhi
1997 Latest Caselaw 217 Del

JUDGMENT

Dalveer Bhandari, J.

(1) The pleadings in this case are complete.

(2) The controversy involved in the entire case is narrow, and therefore, I proceed to dispose of this matter at the admission stage.

(3) The petitioner who was working as T.B. Health Visitor in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, was retired after attaining the age of superannuation i.e. 58 years against which he filed a case in the Labour Court.

(4) The Labour Court allowed payment of two years wages considering the retirement age of the petitioner as 60 years.

(5) The Municipal Corporation Delhi filed a writ petition before this Court and this Court by order dated December 20, 1994 set aside the judgment of the Labour Court. The amount of Rs. 54,556.00 which has been paid by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi on account of wages paid beyond 58 years and upto 60 years, the M.C.D. started recovering this amount from the pension of the petitioner. The petitioner filed the present writ petition before this Court in which it is prayed that this amount cannot be deducted from the pension. Learned Counsel for the petitioner has placed reliance on Section 11 of the Pension Act, 1871 which reads as under: "SECTION 11. Exemption of Pension from Attachment:-No pension granted or continued by Government on political considerations, or on account of past services or present infirmities or as a compassionate allowance. and no money due or to become due on account of any such pension or allowance."

shall be liable to seizure, attachment or sequestration by process of any Court at the instance of a creditor, for, any demand against the pensioner, or in satisfaction of a decree or order of any such Court."

(6) The learned Counsel for the petitioner has also invited the attention of this Court to Section 60(l)(g) of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908. The said section reads as under: "SECTION 60(l)(g) stipends and gratuities allowed to pensioners of the Government (or of a local authority or of any other employer), or payable out of any service family pension fund notified in the Official Gazette by (the Central Government or the State Government) in this behalf and political pensions;

(7) The interpretation of Section 11 is clear that the amount cannot be recovered from the pension of the petitioner.

(8) Learned Counsel for the petitioner at this stage that the respondent-M.C.D. be given liberty to take appropriate steps to recover this amount. Leave and liberty is granted to the M.C.D. to file appropriate proceeding against the petitioner for recovering the excess amount already paid. Nothing further survives in this writ petition. The writ petition is accordingly allowed and disposed of. The amount already recovered by the M.C.D. shall be refunded to the petitioner within one month from today.