Government cannot withhold Gratuity and Pension during pendency of departmental proceeding or criminal proceeding: SC
THE Supreme Court in a recent judgement held that the Government cannot withhold a part of pension and/or gratuity during the pendency of departmental/ criminal proceedings. The Supreme Court observed,
It is an accepted position that gratuity and pension are not the bounties. An employee earns these benefits by dint of his long, continuous, faithful and un-blemished service.
What is a pension? What are the goals of pension? What public interest or purpose, if any, it seeks to serve?
The antiquated notion of pension being a bounty, a gratuitous payment depending upon the sweet will or grace of the employer not claimable as a right and, therefore, no right to pension can be enforced through Court has been swept under the carpet by the decision of the Constitution Bench in Deoki Nandan Prasad v. State of Bihar and Ors wherein this Court authoritatively ruled that pension is a right and the payment of it does not depend upon the discretion of the Government but is governed by the rules and a Government servant coming within those rules is entitled to claim pension. It was further held that the grant of pension does not depend upon any one's discretion.
It is thus hard earned benefit which accrues to an employee and is in the nature of “property”. This right to property cannot be taken away without the due process of law as per the provisions of Article 300 A of the Constitution of India.