ANUJ KUMAR DEY Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Anuj Kumar Dey, the appellant herein, joined Indian Navy as Artificer Apprentice on 12/8/1971. On 17/8/1971 the statutory oath of allegiance was administered to him. He claims that his service in the Indian Navy must be calculated from that date, that is, 17/8/1971. On 11/8/1975 the appellant's training as Artificer Apprentice was over. Immediately thereafter, he was advanced to Electrical Artificer Vth Class on 12/8/1975. Various promotions were given to the appellant thereafter from time to time. On 31/1/1988 the appellant was released from the Navy. The dispute in this case is about the entitlement of the appellant to get pensionary benefits for his service under the Navy. According to the appellant, he has served the Navy for more than fifteen years which must be counted from 17/8/1971 when he was administered oath of allegiance. According to the respondents, the four years spent by the appellant as Artificer Apprentice was training period only and, therefore, the service of the appellant commenced only on 12/8/1975 when he was appointed Electrical Artificer Vth Class, after completion of his training as Artificer Apprentice on 11/8/1975. The question is whether this period of four years, 17/8/1971 to 11-8-1975 during which the appellant was undergoing training as Artificer Apprentice under the Navy, should be counted in the period of service rendered by the appellant.

(2.) Before going into the merits of the case, it will be necessary to refer to the relevant provisions of the Navy Act, 1957 and also to some of the Regulations framed under the said Act:

(3.) Apart from the aforesaid provisions of the Navy Act, by Section 184 the central government has been empowered to make regulations in respect of, inter alia, "the terms and conditions of service, the pay, the pensions, allowances and other benefits of persons in the naval service, including special provision in this behalf during active service". In exercise of this power, the central government has framed the regulations called "the Navy Pension Regulations, 1964 ". "service" has been defined in Regulation 2 (1 to mean "service in the Indian Navy". Ch. III of the Regulations deals with sailors. In this Chapter, Regulation 69 (2 deals with service, pension and gratuity of the sailors. Regulation 78 lays down, "unless otherwise provided, the minimum service which qualifies for service pension is fifteen years". Regulation 79 is important for the purpose of this case and lays down: "all service from the date of enrolment or advancement to the rank of ordinary seaman or equivalent to the date of discharge shall qualify for pension or gratuity. " Regulation 261 deals with recruitment and provides: