OMPATI DEVI Vs. UNION OF INDIA AND ORS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner being the widow of Head Constable-Joginder Singh who was serving with the CRPF seeks the grant of extra-ordinary family pension, which has been declined vide order of December, 2014 (Annexure P-6).

(2.) The reasoning given in the said order to deny the benefit is that there are five distinct Categories from A to E, whereby the entitlement as such would lie. The death in question was covered under category A of Central Civil Services (Extraordinary Pension) Rules, 1939 (hereinafter referred to as '1939 Rules') and, therefore, the earlier classification under Category 'C' on 01.03.2011 (Annexure P-2) was wrong, which has now, thereafter, been changed on 07.03.2014. The judgment passed in 'Kunta Devi Vs. Union of India and others' 2011 (1) PLR 668 was distinguished on the ground that it was an individual case and it could not be implemented as general rule for other cases, in view of the existing rules on the subject. Keeping in view the fact that an office order had been issued that the death of the serviceman was not attributed to Government Service and not entitled for extra-ordinary family pension, which has been duly endorsed by IG Jammu Sector on 21.10.2014, the claim as such was rejected. The ground taken was that there was no nexus and casual connection between death and Government Service, as evident from the Court of Inquiry/Postmortem report in the instant case being a natural death.

(3.) The issue as such is settled beyond any anvil of doubt. In the peculiar facts and circumstances of the present case, as the respondents have chosen to shift the category of the death, on account of the fact that the petitioner had filed a representation for the grant of extra-ordinary family pension, which is totally uncalled for.