A FAITHFUL PRESENTATION OF VITAL POINTS FOR CRUCIAL 23 SEPTEMBER 2015 SC BENCH HEARING TO CLINCH SPECIFIC FAVOURABLE JUDGEMENT: No 2
Dear All,
This is in continuation of my email dt 8/9/2015,where also lot of ground was covered & 2 important latest Court judgements were also aired & elaborated to make our case very strong.In this substantial elucidation is done,especially to address to some areas where doubts were expressed by some & hopefully,this exercise will enable a more optimistic & pragmatic realization & solution, to be more than reasonably confident of a positive outcome, more so when activists are working hard to help & assist those who,with their Sr Counsel must move heaven & earth, at this final stage to ensure as smooth a ride as possible without any miss whatsoever. I have deliberately entered Solution or Positive or Clinchers or Productive thoughts in Bigger Font 14.
1) With all Software, Hardware,& Humanware tools,resources, strategy chalked out,Presentation full of Conviction, Sr Counsel to step into the shoes of Aggrieved Pensioners, majority 70,75,80 & above,portray graphically the malaise faced by pensioners, so real,cumulative loss of DR for pre-8/97 pensioners immense & for ALL groups of pensioners, considerable loss of pension all thro these long years, in spite of LIC Board Resolution dt 24 /11/2001, in spite of stirring Hon SJ Judgement JPR, Bhandari, upheld by DB etc etc ,stoic silence, bureaucracy immune to resolve issues, genuine, modest, legitimate of pensioners.
2)Financial & Service Sectors real & true engine of growth propeller for the Indian economy, bonanza to UOI thro steadily rising surplus, one of the highest Income tax paying institutions, Peoples money for Peoples welfare, none can emulate or exemplify as much LIC has contributed for investments in infrastructure & other projects,
--called upon to stabilize stock markets,even politely ordered to participate in bank financing to bring back normalcy et all, FMs utterances in 46TH Indian Labour Conference ,succinct & meaningful,where he said ,those institutions which are profitable & doing well can afford to pay higher rewards to labour & if processes make Govt richer, Govt too can afford to help labour as much as Govt wants to do as also social security--true to his word, employees & pensioners of LIC, therefore,richly deserve fair,liberal construction of benefits ,more so for Retirees,Elders & Sr Citizens.
3)There was also a gleam of joy that 1st time SC Bench has used words ,in its Interim Order, 7th May,2015, after ordering 20 % payment to petitioners,as per impugned High Court Judgement, added 'later, in continuum' & also ' as this involves question of enhancement of pension,' CAs will be taken up for hearing on 23 September, 2015 & Case Nos to be 1--5 .This indicates a sense of priority being bestowed for finalisation of verdict early hereafter.
4)Matters of law, course of judicial progress in various HC so far & also SC, other submissions especially on discrimination & denial of Fundamental Rights & specific elements to strongly buttress powerful arguments for Pension upgradation on the basis of very many SC Nakra & other judgements but also latest OROP with clear definition of pension upgradation, Patna HC scintillating verdict dt 18/5/2015 with copious Quotes from earlier SC judgements , SC 1st July 2015 verdict by Hon Dipak Misra & Sapre, earlier
5-Judge SC Former Chief Justice RMLodha presided , ordering Pre-2006 govt retirees to get pension revision benefits wef 1/1/2006 & not 14/9/2012 as UOI was going on uttering & now a reality ,with Govt having issued clearcut orders recently. So, always to be pessimistic,that even if we win the case finally hands down with full victory, UOI/LIC will try to shelve the case etc.,please do not blow this negative stance. We can face it, if it comes. Winning the case in SC Bench will be a feather in our cap, all anger,frustration,helplessness,doubting Thomases shall disappear. Don't you think this is a MAJOR advancement for a final act of being beneficiaries,which we could not assume so far ?
5)a)It may also be that when end result after 23 September,2015, wherever it takes us, depending on progress & movement, Rejoinder to UOI SLP & Condonation of delay, UOI replies etc etc may take some time, yet Destination DDay is not far off. So,when ,in their hearts,they know Pensioners Case & Cause is so strong & unassailable from many points of view, few inserted above mentioning LATEST Class verdicts in pensioners favour & not throwing accepted, approved dicta to the winds or any re-examination or reinterpretation, Victory smell in the air,one does not want to ascribe wholeheartedly, & want to join in the environment of fragrance & success .
b)Are we again alienating the GOLDEN PRINCIPLE of FULL DR & PENSION UPGRADATION with every wage revision, a hallmark of Nakara judgement & just 2 months before ,testified by none other than 1st JULY 2015 Verdict Hon Dipak Misra & Hon Sapre. Pray AIIPA & Fedn of Retired Class I Officers Assns sing the Pensioners' Nigam Geeth of Twin Benefits & join the Orchestra in Utmost Good Faith, Uberrima Fides.
c)The near-final-victory positioning equilibrium as,SC Bench verdict dt 7th May 2015 heralds a forward-looking ,issue of 'ENHANCEMENT OF PENSION' as mentioned & so given PRIORITY Case Nos 1-5 on 23 September, 2015 should not be upset
. 6)a)D.A--D.R. Anamoly :- L I C Pensioners have been stabbed in the back right from the commencement of the pension scheme in LIC. In the MOU between Mgmt. and In service unions 12 Jan 1994 it was agreed upon that D.R to pensioners will be granted on basic pension at such rates as may be determined from time to time in line with D.A formula for in-service employees. However Pension Rules 1995 when gazetted, it included Appendix IV which provided for reduction of slab of D.R. to half that of D.A. slabs—and as a result in one stroke, D.R. got reduced to half thus resulting in a reduced and truncated DR right from the inception of the pension scheme. Thus pensioners continue to draw the same Basic Pension fixed for them at the time of retirement even after the passage of over 22 yrs. SUPREME COURT should be impressed upon to strike Appendix IV as arbitrary, discriminatory ab initio and direct LIC to pay the appropriate D.R to the pensioners right
from the date of retirement with interest at 12% for the delay.
b) A progressive organization must aim for equity & harmony & to establish & preserve integrity of relativity in pay & pension, which is vital. EQUALITY of interests & no discrimination should be the ethical ground & principle. That is violated by Restrictive Appendix IV formula
c) Look at DR per slab difference Rs0.93 to 11.50 for pre-8/97 now after 8/2007 wage revision rising to a whopping Rs 6.37 to Rs 29.25 from Asst to ED cadre .Now 5 Groups of pensioners corresponding to Wage Charter period,DR payment discriminatory to EACH GROUP is a flagrant violation of Agreed conclusions.Parity between pensioners & in-service employees is thrown to the winds.Look at the significant loss for all cadres & if one notices the CPI ,600, 1148, 1740, 2328, 2944 & it is jumping as at 1/8/2012 to 4708,difference of 1764 in view of continued double digit inflation now only abating slowly, as against about 600 points or 150 slabs difference in 5 years.
d)How can any sane Court accept such a lackadaisical attitude of not helping pensioners to lead a NORMAL LIFE after such long decades of excellent service & in return such continued loss mounting & mounting only. How can any progressive organization bind future employees & pensioners to a limited agreement & more so with illegalities & insufficiencies & adverse repercussions on pensioners disturbing terribly the concept of EQUALITY ?
e)KERALA HC ,Chandrasekar Menon T Vs UOI & Ors: ' the object of compensation & neutralization is completely defeated by payment of DR after reducing slab at all stages. DR at decresing slab at all stages is UNJUST & UNREASONABLE '
f)Rules which provide for differential treatment amongst the same class of employees are violative of Articles 14,16,21 of the Constitution &are not enforceable.While in the instant case,the retired employees are being treated unequally in as much as several classes have come up amongst the one class of retired employees(pensioners ),this mini-classification itself is violative of Articles 14 & 16.No law permits creation of different classes amongst one class
7) a)HERE IS THE WINNING STROKE : Further, it is to be borne in mind that LIC itself ,in its SECRET letter dt 31/12/2001 to then Joint Secretary,MOF,Sri Ajit Sharan, secured under RTI & 11/8/2003 & in 2009 February & May, to MOF/UOI state clearly "there is an urgent need to rationalize the DR structure available to different groups of pensioners in order to reduce the administrative inconvenience & also to see that different generations of pensioners are protected by merging the pension to a suitable index. " This clinches the issue of successive pension revisions with every wage revision.It has a vital bearing on continued pension upgradation. It stretches & goes beyond Board Resolution to capture full & continuous pension revision at CPI 600,1148,1740,2328,2994. It exposes LIC doublespeak about pension upgradation ,saying Board Resolution refers to Full DR only,whereas in this letter to Joint Secretary (Insurance & Banking ),goes beyond Board Resolution to capture full & continuous pension upgradation. This should serve as a CLINCHER by our SR COUNSEL during submissions on 23 Sep 2015 or any DDay fixed by SC Bench.
b)This has to be done, to deny pleasure to pessimists ,who, time & again , tomtom same tone & tune that LIC Board Resn dt 24/11/2001 contains only DR anamoly rectification & 11.25 % weightage reference is not for pension upgradation.
So too,if this Secret LETTER is not brought to the notice of eminent SC Bench ,ALL pessimist will again say Bhandari judgement is not clear or emphatic.
c)LIC OF INDIA ( PENSION) Amendment Rules, 2000 Notification dated 22-6-2000 issued under u/s Sec 48 of LIC Act 1956:-This Amendment which divides the pensioners artificially into 2 Groups – Pre –August 1997 and Post-August 1997 is a deliberate and calculated , malicious and diabolical move and is highly arbitrary, discriminatory and violates Fundamental Right under Articles 14, 16 and 21. It is absolutely necessary to impress upon SC to declare this DRACONION LAW as null and void ab initio.
8)SC 5 Judge Constitution Bench presided over by Justice Y.V. Chandrachud in D.S.Nakara Vs Union Of India case( AIR 1983 SC 130) " By introducing an arbitrary eligibility criteria , for being eligible for the liberalized pension scheme and thereby dividing a homogeneous class violates Art. 14 and is unconstitutional….. " pension is neither a bounty nor a matter of grace depending on the sweet will of the employer. It is not an ex-gratia payment, but is a deferred wage for past services rendered by him…….Pension is their statutory, inalienable and legally enforceable right. It has been earned by the sweat of their brow. As such it should be fixed, revised, modified in ways, not entirely dissimilar to the salaries granted to serving employees
9) LIC Board Resolution of 24-11-2001 :- The SC must be impressed upon that the SB and DB directions of Jaipur HC must be implemented and the CG should not be allowed to intervene on extraneous and unsubstantiated grounds AT THIS LAST HEARING because of CG's monumental silence all these long years. When the CG Attorney does not have reasoned arguments to convince the Judiciary, he should not be allowed to confuse and confound them and try to lead them into a blind alley or unsubstantiated grounds .
10) Pension Rules, 1995 :- There are clear provisions in the Pension Rules for revision and up- gradation, and the SC must be unequivocally impressed on this aspect. LIC Pensioner Funding is strong being built on sound prudent and scientific lines.
11) a) I read somewhere some statement that amounts should be agreed upon as any arguments, LIC may try to subvert etc. Nothing like that, when in the course of the submissions on 23 Sep 2015, a clear enunciation of the principles & procedures coupled with established practices will be highlighted by our Sr Counsel. Above all, even in the famous 5 –Judge SC Bench Nakara judgement hailed as Magna Carta for pensioners, it is made simple, understandable, when they said largely in the same way as is normally done for employees at the time of wage revision. This is the nitty gritty of any revision.
b)If for a Wage agreement,LIC merges DA with Basic Pay,it is a 5-year agreement,for us Pensioners, depending on Pensioners Group, merge DR with Basic Pension,arrive at RevisedBPension(RBP) +DR as per slabs for CPI, for that Group, then again merge New DR with RBP & DR as per Slabs for that Group, so BP +DR, then RBP +New DR, then RBP2 +DR2,then RBP3+ DR3 depending on Pensioners' group. Latest Group for pension upgradation will be 1/8/2002—31/7/2007 as wage talks have not concluded for Employees 1/8/2012--31/7/2017
In fact, Bank Fedns have already circulated Arrears Calculator!!
12)Masterly calculations so professionally done is useful & a means to persuade & pressurise SC & throw out LIC Sr Counsel arguments of unwillingness to grant pension upgradation on the DDay. BUT SC Bench says they are not interested in computation tenets ! Bench will be more concerned with case laws, matters of equity & equality, set right discrimination at any cost, & only in general, outlay as they never depend on that but command instns to settle within a definite deadline to all aggrieved in same position & similar circumstances, as per normal procedures & principles followed for wage refixation .
13)a)TABLE of BASIC PAY : MAXIMUM of Grade,BPension,BP after CV,DA,Total Pension (TP),Commuted Portion,Commuted Value(CV)
CADRE
|
BASIC PAY
|
BASIC Pension
|
BP after Commutation
|
DA
|
TOTAL PEN
|
COMMUTED PORTION
|
COMMUTATION VALUE
|
ZM(S)
|
59850
|
29925
|
19950.00
|
25406.33
|
45356.33
|
9975
|
1174257
|
ZM(O)
|
53610
|
26805
|
17870.00
|
22757.45
|
40627.45
|
8935
|
1051829
|
SDM
|
47960
|
23980
|
15986.67
|
20359.02
|
36345.69
|
7993
|
940936
|
DM
|
42860
|
21430
|
14286.67
|
18194.07
|
32480.74
|
7143
|
840874
|
ADM
|
41660
|
20830
|
13886.67
|
17684.67
|
31571.34
|
6943
|
817330
|
AO
|
39010
|
19505
|
13003.33
|
16559.745
|
29563.08
|
6501
|
765298
|
AAO
|
35370
|
17685
|
11790.00
|
15014.57
|
26804.57
|
5895
|
693960
|
HGA
|
31330
|
15665
|
10443.33
|
13299.59
|
23742.92
|
5221
|
614617
|
ASST.
|
26930
|
13465
|
8976.67
|
11431.79
|
20408.45
|
4488
|
528328
|
RC
|
19045
|
9522.50
|
6348.33
|
8084.60
|
14432.94
|
3174
|
373644
|
PEON
|
14415
|
7207.50
|
4805.00
|
6119.17
|
10924.17
|
2402
|
282764
|
SWEEPER
|
13330
|
6665
|
4443.33
|
5658.59
|
10101.92
|
2221
|
261457
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
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|
|
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b)It will be seen that Pensioners get such secondary treatment when we find we got perhaps a Sweepers or Peons or RCs or Asst's Commuted value. Even Commuted pension after 8/2002 is higher than Basic Pension of pre-8/97 pensioners
Look at the fabulous CV,Bottom to Top,Sweeper to ED. How much damage to all earlier Pensioners' Groups as we go along.
14) It must be pointed out that substantial Retirement Benefits present day pensioners get such as Gratuity Rs 10 lacs, Encashment of PL,CV OF PENSION, GSLI, Decent PF accumulations etc, whereas,
---many daily disabilities & expenses on all items,high inflation, &
--- especially medical Domiciliary outlay pretty high for Pensioners, when for Employees, Domiciliary benefits allowance of Rs4000—8000pa ,and Medical Check up from age 45 of employees Rs 2000—4000pa for various cadres & frequency increasing at higher ages are granted by LIC. Pensioners who more richly deserve,because of age & inherent reasons do not get a penny on this count.
15)This shows such a shabby, miserly treatment to the pensioners. Our Retirement benefits was a pittance. Only way to compensate to a limited extent, certainly not in full, is the concept of pension upgradation with every wage revision. Right,Left,Centre Previous Pensioners LOSS INCREDIBLE cannot be fully compensated.So too,grant Pension Upgradation here & now realistically & genuinely only.
16)a)THIS IS NOT A REVELATION but A TRITE FACT.TODAYS ASSISTANT gets a GRATUITY of Rs 10 LACS.TODAY'S ASSISTANT gets a GROSS SALARY—BASIC +DA of Rs52,327.ASST RETIRED on 30/9/2013 gets PF OF Rs 7.52 LACS of LIC CONTRIBUTION ALONE.TODAYS ASST gets PENSION OF Rs 21,447
RETIREMENT BENEFITS from ASST to ED is nowadays colossal. Pittance of Retirement benefits comprising Commuted value of Pension, Gratuity & PL Encashment eg. Group II Pensioners(1/8/92-31/7/97) ranges from Rs3,94,450 for Asst to Rs7,72,985 for ED as against ,
Rs 13,63,381 for Asst to Rs31,38,057 for ED,for Group V,(1/8/2007—31/7/2012) indicating such a colossal difference of Rs9,68,931 to Rs23,65,072 for Asst to ED between Group II & Group V Pensioners.
b)Further,Basic Pension & DR at Asst level for Group II pensioners is Rs 15,088pm & ranges to Rs 24,282 pm for ED, & Rs 20,882 pm for Asst to Rs59,371 for ED,for Group V, indicating yet again, the magnitude of difference/deficit of Rs 5794pm for Asst to Rs35,089pm for ED. WHITHER EQUITY & JUSTICE, SC BENCH MUST ENSURE THE CITADELS OF JUSTICE,so SACRED & SACROSANCT , should not be allowed to fall .What more graphic picture is required, presented by these painstaking preparations & calculations, to impress the Hon SC Bench on 23/9 with true but poignant picture of grotesque anamolies & handicaps, of the dire need to redress the mounting loss of pension consecutively for years & decades since Retirement, ONLY through pension revision with every wage revision.
c)DO you want to NARRATE the BEGGARLY RETIREMENT BENEFITS MANY OF THE EARLIER GROUPS of PENSIONERS got ? IT will be a BOLT FROM THE BLUE,SHOCKING & the INSTITUTION must HANG ITS HEAD IN SHAME THAT SUCH A PALTRY, MISERLY & SHABBY TREATMENT was METED OUT to Seniors & Elders
17)Basic Pension unchanged & static right from 1/11/ 1993 ,a long long 22 yrs !! is unthinkable & unjust;it will be a travesty of justice,building up, perplexing anamolies, glaring discrepancies & unbridgeable paradoxes, 7/8 cadres below,a Peon & RC getting more pension than pre-8/1997 ZM & ED & so,has to be addressed & redressed,by LIC. Basic criteria is grant of similar pension for all those with same length of service for the same cadre & that is violated. It is an anachronism that LIC pensioners still continue in pre-1995 IV Pay Commission mode.
18)PENSIONERS need no certificate or testimonial from anybody.they have played their part, played it well & played to win for the institution. but in spite of all these devotion & dedication, commitment & consistency shown to their masters, institution or Corporation which has richly benefited out of their service with all handicaps & limitations & family problems not addressed during service as one ought to have done ,because of compulsions of office rules or decency or decorum, with all these silent pains & pangs, only thing pensioners got was a good goodbye & nothing else.
19)What pensioners are asking for is not even the tail of the Wage agreement PLLI or
the tail of the subsidiary benefits,other than BP,DA,HRA,CCA etc like Transport allowance,Fixed Personal Allowance,Cash Medical Benefit etc,granted to employees in wage settlements or
the tail of the Meal Coupon outlay bonanza as an Anniversary gift to employees on 1/9/2010 & progressively being improved.
20 )Pensioners are demanding their legitimate right of equity, equality,dignity of life and for that financial ramifications cannot be cited as an excuse ,more so by modern progressive and enlightened institutions as they ought to be ,and LIC always hailed universally as an institution par excellence with peoples money for peoples welfare & a proven track record of a giant of financial strength and solidity
21)As LIC talks about Petitioners did not agitate or claim specific benefits showing revision of DA & Basic Pay,thatPetitioners are enlarging scope now & claiming relief now not claimed originally,casts serious financial burden,that Board Resolution is reported wrongly etc can easily be rebutted by enumerating related aspects,one by one to mock at such wrong statements,----- which will hold PROMINENCE on 23 Sep 2015 & efforts serious & professional, without any gaps in logic & ample caselaws have to be briefly ,forcefully & aggressively presented to counter Sri Abhishek Manu Singhvi's full-throated assertions with body language ,by our Sr Counsel to demolish LIC & UOI Sr Counsel with full & complete legal & judicial wisdom ,facts & figures aplenty which must come to the fore ,as this will be NOW or NEVER situation,where assertive onslaught with full conviction , must neutralize any risk or threat posed by their Counsels & also, by ably portraying Fundamental Rights violation ,Human rights too as Elders & Sr Citizens, and to end hostile discrimination in both Differential,Truncated DR & 7/8 steps below cadres getting more sumptuous pension than Seniors & Superiors, thus paving the way for correct Retrospective Effective dates for DR & Pension upgradation too.
22)There are HC & SC judgements emphasizing that ' this dichotomy or discrimination neither appeals to reason, nor can the State be permitted to take shelter of financial constraint etc ' . Even if SC normally does not attach much store & importance to Capacity to pay, as SC has said in many verdicts & even admonished Govt & Instns pretending to protect themselves under the garb of no adequate resource or financial position ,not able to pay, SC squarely rejected such pleas & commanded them ,at the time of final verdict to pay the amounts due & arrears within some stipulated time & deadline of, say 2—3 months,failing which interest has to be added specifying interest of, say 9%,& also reporting to SC Registrar Monthly Action Taken Report/ATR to come on line with adhering to SC Verdict in letter & spirit. THIS MUST GIVE SOME SOLACE TO THOSE WHO ARE WORRIED THAT IF OUTLAY IS HEAVY ,UOI/LIC MAY NOT AGREE TO PAY.
Greetings,Goodluck & Godspeed,
R.B.KISHORE, VP, AIRIEF
