BANTI DEVI Vs. UNION OF INDIA AND ORS.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner being the mother of the deceased Pawan Kumar has preferred the writ petition under Articles 226/227 of the Constitution of India seeking quashing of the letter dtd. 19/3/2015 (P4) whereby her claim of service-cum-death benefits and grant of family pension has been rejected.

(2.) A perusal of the impugned communication would show that the stand taken by the official respondents is that as per CCS (Pension) Rules, 1972, family pension cannot be granted to mother of a deceased person when a legally wedded wife and next of kin (NOK) is alive. Respondent No.3 Smt. Babita Rani widow of the deceased was thus held fully eligible for family pension and sharing of pension between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law was not permissible as per the Rules and thus the challenge to the said communication.

(3.) Respondents No.1&2 in their reply have submitted that as per Rule 54 of the Rules ibid, respondent No.3 being a legally wedded wife is entitled to receive all the pensionary benefits including family pension and 1 of 3 the petitioner being the mother of the deceased soldier has no legal right to claim any portion of the family pension in her favour when the wife is alive. It is pointed out that the petitioner had earlier filed Civil Suit No.62 of 2015 along with an application for temporary injunction for payment of all pensionary benefits to her due to the death of her son. The stay application was dismissed on 9/12/2015 (R1/3). The suit was thereafter withdrawn on 2/2/2016 (P8). It is apparent that writ petition was filed thereafter and the stay has been granted on 26/4/2016 regarding pension that it should not to be disbursed to the respondent-wife.