HARYANA STATE ELECTRICITY BOARD Vs. SURASTI DEVI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Leave granted.

(2.) This appeal by special leave arises from the judgment and decree dated 23/3/1995 made in RSA No. 618 of 1995 by the High court of Punjab and Haryana.

(3.) The only question is whether the mother of the deceased employee is entitled to the family pension. The High court in its judgment had applied Rule 8.35 of the Punjab Civil Services Rules and held that the mother is also a dependant. Consequently, she is entitled to the family pension. The only question, therefore, is whether Rule 8.35 is applicable to the family pension , and whether the mother is dependant. The Family Pension Scheme was brought into force by statutory rules which was amended w. e. f. 15/5/1977. It would indicate that the provisions of these rules shall apply to a regular employee of the Punjab government in a pensionable establishment on or after 1/7/1964 to a Punjab government employee who was in service on 30/6/1964 and came to be governed by the provisions of the Family Pension Scheme for the government employees. Rule 6.17 (3 defines 'family' for the purpose of this Scheme to include the relatives of the government employee - (a) wife, in the case of a male government employee and husband, in the case of a female government employee; (b) a judicially separated wife or husband; (c) minor sons; and (d) unmarried daughters below the age of 21 years. Note I includes children adopted legally before retirement. Note 2 states that a marriage after retirement will not be recognised for purpose ofthis Scheme. A reading thereof would clearly indicate that the Family Pension Scheme is covered by Ch. VI of the Punjab Civil Services Rules, Vol. II. The enumerated persons are eligible to get family pension according to the family pension scheme. It is true that Rule 8.35 defines 'mother' also as one of the persons eligible for family pension. But it will be in relation to the death due to wounds or other extraordinary pensions. The extent of the applicability of these rules in Ch. VIII has been enumerated to different persons and Rule 8.35 (1 enumerates that a family pension will take effect from the day following the death of the government employee or from such other date as the competent authority may decide and a family pension will ordinarily be tenable in the case of a widow or mother until death or remarriage, whichever occurs earlier. In other respects, we are not concerned with clauses (ii) , (iii) and (iv) , as the case may be. In view of the fact that the death of the respondent is not covered by Ch. VIII, coming under 'special' circumstances, the normal enumeration in Ch. VI gets attracted. In consequence, the mother having been excluded from the persons eligible for family pension according to Ch. VI, she becomes ineligible for family pension.