BROOKE BOND INDIA LIMITED Vs. V S NARAYANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The short and succinct question as to the maintainability of the writ petitions and the validity of the order dated 17-3-1999 in W.P. No.10389 of 1994 appealed in Writ Appeal No.692 of 1999, falls for consideration in all these matters.

(2.) . Writ Appeal No.692 of 1999 is filed by the Brooke Bond India Limited - the respondent in W.P. No.10389 of 1994. W.P. No. 10389 of 1994 and the other two writ petitions have been filed by retired employees of the Brooke Bond India Limited, a public limited company (for short 'the company'), in substance, seeking a declaration that the action of the company in not confering and refusing pensionary benefits to retired employees, who retired from service prior to 1986 and confining the benefits only to employees belonging to non-executive classes as per the Revised Pensionary Benefits dated 1-4-1991, as illegal, null and void and for a consequential direction to the company to give them pensionary benefits in the same manner as is being given to employees who retired in 1992 and to give proportionate benefits to non-executive employees as per the Revised Pensionary Benefits dated 1-4-1991 including arrears from the date each of the pensioners retired from service.

(3.) . The company appears to have introduced a pension scheme in 1979. The petitioners opted for the same and their pension was fixed accordingly. The pension scheme was revised subsequently, but the revised benefits were not extended to the several writ petitioners who had retired prior to the revision and for whom the pensionary benefits were continued on the same terms as per the earlier scheme under which they were initially granted pension. The writ petitions were filed, in the above circumstances, claiming parity of treatment with pensioners who had subsequently retired and were given the benefit of revised pension under the Revised Pension Scheme.