No Pension For Government Employees Who Resign – Supreme Court of India
Supreme Court Important Ruling on Pension
Government Employees
becomes ineligible for pension under the Central Civil Services Pension Rules
(CCS Pension Rules) when he resigns – Supreme Court Rules
Making a distinction
between voluntary retirement and resignation, the Supreme Court has said that
government employees will not be entitled to pension if they resign
from service as it forfeits their past service.
Referring to the Central Civil Services Pension Rules, a bench of
Justices D Y Chandrachud and Hrishikesh Roy said that in case of resignation,
the entire past service would be forfeited, and consequently, an employee would
not qualify for pensionary benefits.
The pension rules
apply to government servants, including civilian government servants in the
defence services, appointed before December 31, 2003.
The court passed the order on an appeal filed by BSES Yamuna Power
Ltd challenging an order of the Delhi high court directing it to
provide pension to an employee who resigned after 20 years of service. The HC
had said that the employee was entitled to get voluntary retirement after
completing 20 years of service and he was, therefore, entitled to pensionary
benefits after resigning from the job.
The apex court, however, said taking voluntary retirement and resigning from
job are two different things and pension cannot be given in case of
resignation. “Where an employee has resigned from service, there arises no
question of whether he has in fact voluntarily retired or resigned. The
decision to resign is materially distinct from a decision to seek voluntary
retirement. The decision to resign results in the legal consequences that flow
from a resignation under the applicable provisions. These consequences are
distinct from the consequences flowing from voluntary retirement and the two
may not be substituted for each other based on the length of an employee’s
tenure,” the bench said.
The apex court said though both involve voluntary acts, they operate
differently. “One of the basic distinctions is that in case of resignation it
can be tendered at any time, but in the case of voluntary retirement, it can
only be sought for after rendering the prescribed period of qualifying service.
Another fundamental distinction is that in case of the former, normally retiral
benefits are denied but in case of the latter, the same is not denied,” the
court said while referring to its earlier verdicts.
Source: The Times of India
