ISHA BABY Vs. UNION OF INDIA & ORS.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner is an unmarried daughter of a freedom fighter. Her mother Thankamma was a recipient of Central and State pensions being the legal heir of the freedom fighter. On the death of her mother on 17.3.2007, the petitioner became eligible to draw the pension. The petitioner was paid pension at the rate payable to widows. That was a mistake. She is entitled to draw pension only at the rate payable to unmarried daughters being the dependent. She was paid excess Central pension from 1.4.2007 to 1.3.2014 amounting to Rs. 9,79,384/-. Taking note of the fact that the petitioner was paid excess Central Pension (S.S.S. Pension), the pension was stopped from October 2013 onwards. The State Government also started recovering a sum of Rs. 3,675/- from the State pension payable to the petitioner with effect from 3.10.2015. The petitioner challenges these orders in this matter apart from challenging the revenue recovery now initiated to recover Rs. 9,53,659/-. Taking note of the recovery already made, this Court is of the view that the amount would be less than the amount mentioned in the revenue recovery notice.

(2.) The petitioner placed reliance on a Division Bench judgment of this Court reported in Saraswathi v. Southern Railway (2014 (2) KLT 494) wherein this Court adverting to Article 21 of the Constitution and assimilating the principles on right to live took the view that recovery of excess family pension paid to a widow is not valid. The petitioner also placed reliance on section 60(g) of the Civil Procedure Code, 1908 referring to the prohibition of attachment of any political pension.

(3.) The fact that the petitioner was paid excess pension is not in dispute. The question is, in what manner it can be recovered. The petitioner relied on a judgment of the Apex Court in State of Punjab and Others v. Rafiq Mashih (White washer) etc. (AIR 2015 SC 696) and referred to paragraph-12 of that judgment, wherein the Apex Court held under the following circumstances the recovery is impermissible.