M P PARTHASARATHY Vs. CHAIRMAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) IN the first two writ petitions, a group of persons who are ex-employees of the State Bank of INdia have filed writ petitions, seeking for a direction to respondents 1 to 3 to revise the pension payable to the petitioners on the basis of last 12 months average salary drawn by them at the time of opting for retirement under SBI Voluntary retirement scheme by implementing the terms of circular, dated 11.1.2001 issued in this regard and consequently, revise the pension to be made effective from 1.4.2001 and also to give effect to enhanced pension in terms of the circular.

(2.) IN W.P.No.8800 of 2009, there are 72 petitioners, who are seeking to challenge the rule 23 of the SBI Employees Pension Fund Rules dated 21.5.1997 and letter, dated 31.10.2000 as disclosed in MOU dated 25.2.2008 and minutes dated 16.10.2008 and after quashing the same, to direct the respondents to discharge the statutory obligation to pay pension from the date of retirement on a single uniform percentage ceiling of 50% of last drawn pay to avoid multiple ceilings of 50% or 40%.

(3.) SUBSEQUENTLY, on 18.3.2008, the Bank informed that they are taking up their legitimate aspirations of 7th Bipartite wage settlement with the Government of India and until such time they heard from the Government of India, they will be paid pension as per the existing rules. It is the case of the petitioners that while the bank chose to revise family pension as per 7th Bipartite wage settlement, they did not revise the pension to the retirees and persons similarly situated cannot be discriminated. Being the retirees, all of them should get the same rate of pension. A group of similarly placed persons filed a writ petition before this court in W.P.No.23523 of 2001 and in batch cases in N.R.Sridharan Vs. State Bank of India and others. The said batch of writ petitions came to be disposed of by an order dated 16.10.2008 directing the Union of India to consider the proposals made by the State Bank of India seeking for approval of draft amendment.