LIC PENSIONERS GET DIFFERENTIAL TREATMENT...

While introducing the pension scheme in July 1995 LIC management agreed that Dearness relief to pensioners will be such rates as applicable to service employees. But LIC has gone back on its words and divided the pensioners into four different groups by an arbitrary cutoff date though it is unconstitutional whereby those who

retired on or before 31-7-1997 were denied of 100% DR neutralization as given to those pensioners who retired after this date. Further there was no revision of pension as given to service employees as and when there was a pay revision once in five years. 

Service employees got three revisions in their pay scale as on 1-8-1997,1-8-2002 and 1-8-2007 and one more revision is in the offing. This created a wide disparity in the quantum of pension received by the earlier retirees compared to those who retired after getting the benefits of pension revision as and when their pay scales were revised. Thus it could be seen that in the present scenario an Executive Director who retired before 1-8-1997 gets a pension far less than a Higher grade assistant who is retiring after 1-8-2007 although the Executive Director is seven ranks above the Higher grade assistant. 

To set right these anomalies LIC Board of Directors after serious discussion with the management passed a resolution on 24-11-2001 in consonance with the management recommendations for a uniform DR pattern and for upgradation of pension and the said resolution was sent to GOI for their approval though LIC could have taken its own decision to implement the Board resolution LIC being an autonomous body and the matter in question does not relate to a public policy. As there was no response from the Government some affected pensioners filed a writ petition in the Jaipur HC and the court after hearing both the parties delivered the judgment on 12-1-2010 ordering LIC to implement the Board resolution dated 20-11-2001. But under instructions from GOI LIC appealed  but the DB judgment upheld the SB judgment and thereafter LIC filed a REVIEW PETITION which again went against  LIC. 

All these were done under the advice of GOI who were acting against their own National litigation policy which categorically declared that “Let the matter go to the court for ultimate decision should be discarded as it is the government responsibility to protect the rights of citizens and in the PSU litigation before going to the court the PSU chief should be consulted to resolve the dispute through mediation resorting to SEC 89 of the code of civil procedure. Giving a go by to their own National litigation policy ( Policy paralysis !! ) GOI instructed LIC to file SLP in Supreme court. Here again it was a debacle to the appellant as SC vacated the stay and consequently the SB Jaipur court judgment has to be implemented. 

In the meanwhile contempt petition filed by the petioners was heard in the JAIPUR HC and LIC Chairman was fined RS.30000 for delay in filing the reply and the ultimate court order is expected to be delivered on 6TH FEB. 2014

pensioners in the evening of their lives...

In the past thirteen years of the court wrangle hundreds of pensioners died and several others in the sun set of their life and living with borrowed time are living on hopes that there will be no more delay in getting their legitimate rights. Is it fair on the part of the Government to deprive them of their rights endorsed by the judiciary?

R.K. Viswanathan

( A pensioner at age 80 ) 

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from calicut to chronicle... (google selection)