H S E B Vs. AZAD KAUR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The husband of the respondent was working as an Upper Division Clerk in the Haryana State Electricity Board. He died on 14-1 1-1996 while in service. The respondent was working as a teacher prior to the date of the death of her husband. After her husband's death, she claimed family pension lo which the respondent and her family were entitled. The respondent was granted the family pension but was not given dearness allowance/relief and interim relief on the ground that the respondent was working as a teacher. The denial of dearness relief was challenged by the respondent in a writ petition filed before the High Court. The High Court granted her clearness relief on family pension. Hence, the appellant Haryana State Electricity Board has filed this appeal.

(2.) The appellants have placed reliance on a decision of this Court in Union of India v. G. Vasudevan Pillay. The decision in that case dealt with ex-servicemen who had been re-employed. The Court said that pensioners who have got re-employment can be treated differently from other pensioners: and in the case of re-employed pensioners, it would be permissible in law to deny dearness relief on pension inasmuch as the salary 1o be paid to them on re-employment takes care of erosion in the value of money because of a rise in prices. The Court also observed that the denial of dearness relief on family pension on a fresh employment being granted to the dependant/widow of an ex-serviceman will also be sustained.

(3.) This decision, therefore, deals with cases where (i) the pensioner himself gets re-employment, or (u) the widow or a dependant of the pensioner such as a son, gets fresh employment on compassionate grounds. It does not deal with any case where one of the recipients of the family pension is also independently employed elsewhere.