(1.) The claim of the petitioner in this petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution is that he has been illegally refused the benefit of pension by order dated 26.9.1986, Annexure P-7. Respondent No. 2 in his order dated 26.9.1986 has refused to count the service of the petitioner rendered by him from the year 1947 to 1976 as Ward Servant in Lady Linlithgow Sanitorium, Kasauli.
(2.) Brief facts of the case unfolded in the present petition are that the petitioner was appointed as Ward Servant in the year 1947 in Lady Linlithgow Sanitorium, Kasauli and continued working on the aforementioned post till 1976. On 3.9.1976, the services of the petitioner were transferred to Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh (for brevity, the PGI) by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India. Accordingly, the petitioner joined as Ward Servant in the PGI on 4.9.1976 and superannuated on 30.6.1985. The petitioner has prayed that the service. rendered by him at Lady Linlithgow Sanitorium, Kasauli be tagged with the service rendered by him at the PGI for the purposes of pension and the arrears of his pension be paid with interest at the rate of 18% per annum.
(3.) The stand of respondent No. 2-PGI in its written statement is that the PGI in the letter of appointment dated 2.9.1976 has clarified that it would not bear any liability towards pension and other allied benefits of service which the petitioner might have rendered while serving at Lady Linlithgow Sanitorium, Kasauli unless otherwise approved by the competent authority. It has further been pointed out that the instructions of Government of India issued vide office memo No. 28/10/Pension Unit dated 29.10.1984 would not be available to the petitioner as the Lady Linlithgow Sanitorium, Kasauli was not financed wholly or substantially by the Central Government. In this regard, reliance has been placed on letter dated 5.5.1986, Annexure R-1 by the Financial Advisor, PGI to the Chairman, Tuberculosis Association of India, New Delhi. Reliance has also been placed on reply of the Chairman, Tuberculosis Association of India, New Delhi dated 20.8.1986, Annexure P-2 which shows that the petitioner was paid Staff Provident Fund and Employee Gratuity Fund Dues as per rules of the Association. It has further been averred that since the service rendered at PGI by the petitioner is less than 10 years, he cannot be given any pension.