- (1.) Petitioner was a member of the Rajasthan Judicial Service and was elevated as a Judge of the Rajasthan High Court on July 1, 1975. He was transferred to the Delhi High Court from where he retired on July 21,1984. A dispute relating to, his pension became the subject-matter of a writ petition before this Court and was disposed of on April 9, 1985 : (1985 (2) SCC 355). This Court fixed his pension at Rs. 21,500 per annum.
(2.) In the meantime, certain changes in the High Court Judges (Conditions of Service) Act, 1954, were brought about, firstly, by Central Act 38/86 and again by Central Act 20/88. Petitioner applied to this Court in Civil Miscellaneous Petition No. 18044/88 asking for benefits under the Amending Act. This Court by its decision on August 18, 1988, refixed petitioner's pension at Rs. 41,600 per annum with effect from January 1, 1986, and at Rs.46,100 per annum with effect from ments referred to above in view (1988 4 SCC 121). In paragraph 19 of this Court's order, it was stated: " We refrain from expressing any opinion as to the effect of lifting of the ceiling on the special additional pension at Rs. 8000 per-annum placed by clause (b) of para 2 of Part III of the First Schedule. The question really, does not arise for our consideration at the moment and is left open."
(3.) The petitioner has now applied to this Court challenging the ceiling on additional pension appearing in clause (b) of para 2 of Part III of the First Schedule to the High Court Judges (Conditions of Service) Act of 1954. The First Schedule deals with pension of Judges. Judges in High Court are recruited from three sources:- (a) From the Bar; (b) members belonging to the former Indian Civil Service; and (c) officers of the State Judicial Service. In this case we are concerned with Part III as petitioner had been elevated as a Judge of the High Court from the Rajasthan State Judicial Service. In respect of such a Judge the pension payable is prescribed to be:- "(a) the pension to which he is entitled under the ordinary rules of his service if he had not been appointed a Judge, his service as a Judge being treated as service therein for the purpose of calculating that pension; and (b) a special additional pension of Rs. 1,600 per annum is respect of each completed year of service for pension, but in no case such additional pension together with the additional or special pension, if any, to which he is entitled under the ordinary rule of his service shall exceed Rs. 8,000 per annum. Provided that the pension under cl. (a) and additional pension under cl. (b) together shall in no case exceed Rs. 54,000 per annum in the case of a Chief' Justice and Rs. 48,000 per annum in case of any other Judge." Since this Court had fixed the pension at Rs. 46,100 and petitioner's claim for being put at par with . other Judges by fixing his pension at Rs. 48,000 per annum had not been accepted, petitioner has approached this Court challenging the ceiling of Rs. 8,000. According to the petitioner, he had put in nine years of completed service as a Judge and on the basis of the provision for special additional pension of Rs. 1,600 per annum in respect of each completed year of service for pension he was entitled to Rs. 14,400 but the limit in the proviso would have the effect of fixing ceiling at Rs. 48,000 per annum. There was no justification to introduce a further ceiling of Rs. 8,000 per annum irrespective of the years of completed service rendered and allow a discrimination to operate. Once the proviso has a limit which meets the purpose there is no basis for the further limit of Rs. 8,000 as contained in para 2(b) above.;