J THARAKESWARA Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner is a retired Superintending Engineer of the General Reserve Engineer Force (for short 'GREF') having retired with effect from 25.06.1978. He was drawing pension from Government of India through the Principal Controller of Defence Accounts (4th respondent). The 4th respondent is the pension sanctioning authority and the 3rd respondent is the head of the office from where the petitioner retired. The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, Border Road Development Board, New Delhi (2nd respondent) is an administrative head of GREF and the 5th respondent is the pension disbursing authority.

(2.) THE petitioner initially entered service in the Ministry of Defence in the post of Superintendent Buildings and Roads Grade-I in the Military Engineering Service (for short MES) as a civilian and having held the higher posts of Assistant Executive Engineer and Executive Engineer in MES, he was directly recruited to the GREF in the year 1975 through Union Public Service Commission and subsequently retired as a Superintending Engineer in GREF. At the time of his retirement. He was drawing the salary of Rs. 1,680.00 per month in the pay scale of Rs. 1500-2000. Having opted for voluntary retirement scheme, he was given weightage of 5 years of service for the purpose of pension and thus at the time of his retirement, he had the qualifying service of 22 years 10 months and 9 days and adding the five years weightage, he had 27 years 10 months and 9 days, which can be rounded off to 27. The petitioner's Group-A service was itself 17 years 8 months and 15 days.

(3.) AT this stage, the Government did not accept the