SARASWATI JOSHI Vs. STATE OF U P

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner is the widow of late Sri K.N. Joshi, who retired as Nagar Abhiyanta Jalkal on 31 -3 -1977. The petitioner has prayed that the respondents may be directed to pay family pension and dearness allowance to her in terms of the judgment and order dated 19th February, 1996 passed by this Court in Civil Misc. Writ Petition No. 15309 of 1984, Moti Lal Agarwal and others v. State of U.P. and others, 1996(1) LBESR 918 (All) and further to quash the order dated 3 -4 -2001 passed by respondent No. 2 on her representation, which has been filed as Annexure -1 to the writ petition.

(2.) THE facts of this case are that petitioner's husband late Sri K.N. Joshi was initially appointed in 1958 as Assistant Water Works Engineer in Nagar Mahapalika, Varanasi (now Nagar Nigam, Varanasi). He was promoted as Nagar Abhiyanta Jalkal and retired on 31 -3 -1977. The pay -scale of late K.N. Joshi at the time of retirement was Rs. 500 -50 -75 -EB -1000 -EB -50 -1250 -150 -50 -1400. The aforesaid pay -scale for the post of Water Works Engineers has been revised with effect from 1 -1 -1996 to Rs. 14,300 -400 -18,300. Petitioner's husband died on 17 -10 -1994 prior to the revision of the pay -scale in January, 1996.

(3.) IT is contended in the petition that she is being harassed by the State Government and is being made to run from pillar to post for payment of dearness allowance on the total amount of her family pension. Earlier also the petitioner had to challenge the arbitrary and discriminatory action of the respondents by means of Civil Misc. Writ Petition No. 2609 of 2001 in which she had prayed for a writ of mandamus directing the respondents to grant revised family pension alongwith the dearness allowance with effect from 1 -1 -1996 to her in terms of the Government order dated 13 -4 -2000 and the judgment dated 19 -2 -1996 in the case of Moti Lal Agrawal and others v. State of U.P. and others, 1996(2) LBESR 918 (All). The aforesaid writ petition was disposed of by a Division Bench of this Court vide judgment dated 22 -1 -2001 directing the authority concerned to decide the representations of the petitioner dated 12 -9 -2000, 16 -10 -2000 and 7 -1 -2001 preferably within two months from the date of production of a certified copy of the order, in accordance with law. In pursuance of the aforesaid judgment the representations of the petitioner has been decided by the impugned order dated 14 -4 -2001 on the solitary ground that Nagar Nigam, Varanasi has its own pension rules and the amount of family pension has rightly been granted to her under the aforesaid rules, as rules of the State Government regarding pension are not applicable in the aforesaid circumstances.