I agree with Mr Sudhakaran that the issue raised in D S Nakra case was the liberalization of the pension scheme
arising on a cut-off date resulting in change
of the formula for calculating
the average emoluments for determining pension which resulted in
discrimination.The parallel in our case is the 100% neutralization effected in DA/
DR for both in-service and retired employees from 1/8/1997 with a uniform DA/DR formula which exposed the
discrimination arising out of the
differential DR formula that was
existing after the notification of LIC Pension Rules 1995 in respect of
pensioners retired prior to 1st August 1997.Surely our case
for removal of DR anomaly and equitable DR neutralization on par with in-service employees in respect of
pre-August 1997 retirees flows from the
Nakara judgment.
But the
case of upgradation has been sufficiently strengthened by Jaipur Single judge
Bench allowing WP no 654/2007.Besides, the direction for implementation of the
LIC Board Resolution dt 24/11/2001 by
LIC clearly supports the case
for upgradation.The LIC Board Resolution requires giving
effect to the proposal to remove the DR
anomaly from 1.11.1993 and upgradation by giving weightage of 11.25% as in the
case of in service employees from 1/8/1997.
If
LIC acts as per the directions of
the Jaipur Bench to implement the LIC Board Resolution,LIC will have to
first
apply the DR formula as applicable to
in-service employees right from
1/11/1993.The next step will be to merge the equitably neutralized DR
upto 1/8/1997 with the existing
Basic Pension and revise the Basic Pension by a suitable weightage as
was done
for in-service employees while revising the wages.(the 11.25% mentioned
in the
Board Resolution has to be taken only as
an average and the weightage in individual cases will vary according to
cadre
and scales of pay).This weighted
sum becomes the upgraded pension on
1/8/1997.Now that two more wage revisions have taken place after date
of the Board Resolution, a similar process of upgradation has to be
followed in
chain also on 1/8/2002 and 1/8/2007 (and
also on 1/8/2012 when wage revision takes place effective from that
date).
When
such an upgradation exercise is done for pre-August 1997 retirees,ipso
facto similar
process of upgradation has to be followed
in respect of post-July 1997 retirees also so that there will be no
discrimination
among the pensioners under the LIC Pension Rules. This in simple terms
means
OROP(One Rank One Pension) for LIC pensioners which in my opinion the
Jaipur
Single Judge Bench judgment provides for. While the Jaipur SJB
judgment remains stay-refused by Supreme Court, the final word has to
come from
Supreme Court on upgradation on or after 23/9/2015 when the hearings
take
place.
The marshalling of the favourable case
laws by the three counsel and effective court-craft under all the Civil Appeals
will become crucial to achieve our goal of upgradation of pension.
Greetings.
C H Mahadevan