AZIMUDDIN ANSARI Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The Government of India introduced a scheme for grant of pension to freedom fighters and their eligible dependents.The scheme was liberalized and renamed as "Swatantrata Sainik Samman Pension Scheme, 1980" which was made effective from 1st August, 1980. From time to time, the scheme has been modified by issuance of different orders and circulars by the Government of India. Under the Scheme, all persons who participated in the freedom movement in some way or the other were eligible for the Samman Pension. One of the requirement for a person to receive pension is that a person must have suffered a minimum imprisonment of six months on account of participation in freedom struggle and would be eligible subject to furnishing certain evidence namely,

(2.) In the Scheme, a person was required to apply for the pension in the prescribed application form, which was required to be sent to the Chief Secretary of the concerned State Government and thereafter it was to be forwarded to the Deputy Secretary of the Government of India, where the claims were required to be processed after receipt of verification and entitlement of such pension report.

(3.) In the light of the aforesaid Scheme, the petitioner applied. Directions were issued to the Authority to make necessary inquiry, and, it transpires that the Tehsildar made a spot inspection and enquired in the matter and in its report recommended the claim of the petitioner annexing the secondary evidence of statements of co-prisoners. The report of the Tehsildar as well as the recommendation of the District Magistrate was forwarded to the State Government. It transpires that the State Government forwarded the matter to the Central Government, who after consideration rejected the claim by an order dated August, 2009. The Ministry of Home Affairs held: