V.K.Purushothaman vs State Express Transport ...
2022 Latest Caselaw 1653 Mad

Citation : 2022 Latest Caselaw 1653 Mad
Judgement Date : 2 February, 2022

Madras High Court

V.K.Purushothaman vs State Express Transport ... on 2 February, 2022

                                  IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT MADRAS

                                                    DATED:02.02.2022

                                                            Coram

                                       The Hon'ble Mr. Justice V.PARTHIBAN

                                                W.P.No.6203 of 2020

                     V.K.Purushothaman                                               ...Petitioner

                                                             Vs.

                     1.State Express Transport Corporation Ltd.,
                       Represented by its Managing Director,
                       No.2, Pallavan Salai, Chennai - 600 002.

                     2.Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation,
                       Employees Pension Fund Trust,
                       Represented by its Adminstrator,
                       Pallavan Salai,
                       Chennai - 600 002.                                         ...Respondents

PRAYER: Petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India praying to issue a writ of Mandamus directing the respondents to settle a sum of Rs.18,450/- towards PRBS and a sum of Rs.1,000/- towards Erode Engineering College and Perunthurai Medical College and the interest amount of Rs.3,45,750/- for belated settlement of terminal benefits of Rs.21,00,000/- settled towards Gratuity, and Provident Fund by considering the petitioner representation dated 19.09.2019.

                                   For Petitioner      ..    Mr.D.Soundar raj

                                   For Respondents ..        Mr.K.Kathiresan
                                                             (for R.1)
                                                             Mr.C.S.K.Sathish
                                                             Standing Counsel (for R.2)


https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis

                                                            ORDER

In this writ petition, the prayer is for the grant of interest for

the belated settlement of retirement benefits like P.F, Gratuity, and

encashment of Earned Leave/sick leave etc. As a matter of fact, this

Court, both Single Judges and Division Benches dealt with such prayer

earlier for payment of interest for the belated settlement of retirement

benefits to the retired transport employees.

2.The Courts have been granting payment of interest @ 4% or

6% as the case may be. In some cases, the Division Bench of this

Court has granted 6% interest and in few other cases this Court has

granted 4% interest. On the whole, this Court finds that, there is no

consensus as to whether 4% or 6% to be granted in such matters

where the employees have been settled their retirement benefits

belatedly due to resource crunch faced by the State Corporation.

3. Today, when this writ petition has been taken up for hearing,

there was a clamour for claiming higher interest of 6 percent and it

was also opposed by the counsels who are representing the

Corporation. According to them in a recent decision of the learned

Judge of this Court in W.P.No.23229 of 2021 dated 28.10.2021, after

taking into account the various earlier orders, has granted only 4

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percent interest. Per contra, the learned counsel Mr.D.Soundar raj,

would rely on a decision of the Division Bench of this Court in

W.A.(MD).No.1349 & 1350 of 2021 dated 12.07.2021, wherein there

was a direction to pay 6% interest. A learned Judge of this Court

following the above Division Bench Judgment in Writ Appeal No.1349

& 1350 of 2021, in a batch of Writ Petitions in W.P.Nos.15636, 15640,

15647, 15651, 15654 & 15656 of 2021 dated 29.07.2021 has once

again granted 6% interest for the delayed payment. One other learned

Judge of this Court vide order dated 02.07.2021 in W.P.No.10553 of

2021 has ordered 6% interest. Therefore, learned counsels appearing

on behalf of the petitioners would pray for 6% interest as majority of

the judges have granted the same.

4.At this learned counsels representing the Corporation

uniformly submitted that already the Corporation has suffered huge

losses due to Covid-19 situation prevailing in State for more than 20

months. The Corporation would be unable to mobilize and come up

with funds to pay 6% interest. The Corporation are already facing

severe financial strain, and unable to sustain itself and any further

increase in the percentage of interest to be paid to the employees, it

would result in severe financial burden on the corporation, which the

Corporation would be unable to bear. The Corporation would also have

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to take into consideration the serving employees and the retiring

employees also in future. Therefore, a passionate request has been

made before this Court for grant of 4% interest which should be

reasonable and fair to compensate belated payment made to the

retired employees.

5. In consideration of the request emanating from the learned

Standing counsels for the Corporation, which appear to this Court to

be fair and reasonable considering the weak financial position of the

Corporation, this Court persuaded the learned counsels appearing for

the petitioners to accept 4% interest. The learned counsel for the

petitioner has accepted 4% interest to be payable on the belated

payment made to the petitioners. During the course of argument it is

also agreed by both the counsels of the corporation that the 4%

interest payable would be settled in one lump-sum, if 8 weeks time is

granted to the Corporation.

6.In view of the consensus being reached by the parties, this

writ petition stands disposed of with the following directions;

The Corporation is directed to pay 4% interest to

the employees who have been settled belatedly their

retirement benefits within a period of 8 weeks from the

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receipt of copy of order of this Court. In case, some of the

employees who have not been settled their portion of the

retirement benefits as such are also entitled to be paid

4% interest till they receive the actual retirement benefits

in full.

Those payment would also carry 4% till the date it is

fully released by the corporation. The interest of 4%

would cover the period of 8 weeks from the date of

receipt of copy of this order.

Any further default of the payment by the

corporation, the interest would be enhanced to 6 percent

after the expiry of 8 weeks of period of time and such

percentage would become payable till the entire amounts

are settled to the employees concerned.