- (1.) The controversy in regard to revising/re-fixing the pension of officers/men who retired at the age of 55 years based on 30 years of qualifying service for full pension instead of 33 years, had been settled by the Supreme Court long back in the case of Raghunandan Lal Choudhary v. Union of India, 1988 AIR(SC) 2125. The Supreme Court had clearly held that in the matter of retirement at the age of 55 years, the qualifying service should be treated as 30 years instead of 33 years.
(2.) Relying on the judgment of the Supreme Court, referred above, many effected persons approached different Courts and relief was granted to them accordingly. Now an order dated 1-7-2002 has been passed by the respondents granting the above relief to only those persons who have judgment of the High Courts in their favour. While challenging the letter dated 1-7-2002, prayer has been made to grant appropriate relief to the petitioner also as has been given to the similarly situated persons, who had approached the Courts.
(3.) The letter dated 1-7-2002 is reproduced here its under : "The DSG : BSF/CRPF/ClSF/NSG/lTBP/AR/SSB. Sub. : Revision/re-fixing the pension of officers/men who retire at the age of 55 years based on 30 years of qualifying service for full pension, instead of 33 years. A number of pensioners of Central Para Military Forces, who had superannuated at the age of 55 years, had approached various Courts for the refixation of their pension based on 30 years of qualifying service instead of 33 years of qualifying service. A number of pensioners of CPMF's had also obtained Court orders from various Courts in their favour based on this judgment of the Supreme Court. 2. It has now been decided in consultation with Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Law that the benefit of full pension on completion of 30 years of qualifying service in case of personnel who had superannuated at the age of 55 years may, for the present, be extended only to the petitioners in cases where the judgments of the High Courts have gone in their favour. 3. This issues with the approval of Ministry of Finance vide their Dy. No. 70/5/2002-IC, dtd. 24-6-02 and IFD Dy. No. 599/2001-Fin.II dtd. 26-6-2002.";