Revered, Respected & Hon.Chief Justice of Supreme Court, Sir,
Re: Undue, inordinate delay of Court matters of Insurance Pensioners - your immediate intervention solicited
1) We wish to bring to your kind notice some crucial facts & developments in the long drawn out, tedious & tortuous legal battle with LIC & UOI about pensioners issues & problems, dragging on & on,for last 12 years & more. Sir, one can understand, if no decision has come from arbiters of Justice & Equity, the Pillars of our Democracy, HCs & SC, who are real Guardians & Protectors of the disadvantaged, the oppressed, the discriminated, Elders & Sr Citizens,one can have less grouse, but , Sir, when ever so many Verdicts & Judgements have come, all in support of the Pensioners , over a long period of time after submissions from all parties, You, as Chief Justice of India, as the Lighthouse of Justice must intervene to stem the prolonged delay & give directions to SC to call a spade a spade, issue writ or direction or mandamus to LIC/UOI to implement the Rajasthan HC judgement dt 12/1/2010 of Hon SJ Bhandari admitting both the writs of 6676/1998 on Dearness Relief to establish equality, as is for serving Employees, instead of truncated 50%DR , as is being paid for pre-8/1997 pensioners, having crossed 76 yrs to 86 yrs already & losing a chunk of DR in these hard-hit days of inflation raging all along.
2) Sir, the 2nd writ admitted was CWP 654/2007 exclusively on pension upgradation substituting scales of pay as & when wage revision for employees take place, quoting many reputed case laws apart from the Magna Carta for pensioners in Nakara case,the 5-Judge SC Bench presided over by Hon CJ Chandrachud, an elucidation & dissertation by Learned & Hon SJ,Rajasthan HC, pointing out gross anomalies & discrepancies in pension whereby 10 cadres below get more pension than the higher cadres retired few years before, that date of retirement is irrelevant, one cannot discriminate groups of pensioners as pre & post, all pensioners form one single homogeneous group only & particularly, when it is an Existing Pension scheme & not any New scheme, all pensioners assuredly deserve pension revision with every wage revision. Sir, many times it so happens, even after favourable verdicts, when Hon Judges fail to mention Effective date categorically, again a flurry &blizzard of supplementary legal activities are forced upon. So, DR from the date of discrimination ie pre-8/1997 pensioners & pension upgradation wef CWP 654/2007 date ie 1/1/2007 or earlier as per rules 1/1/2004, if allowed, will greatly enhance the value of judgement without any hassle of diverse interpretations.
3) It is not for us to point out or portray the ever so many judgements in favour of pensioners or the brilliant expositions from IV,V & VI Pay Commissions propounding the basis & fundamentals of granting pension upgradation with every wage revision, almost on similar lines as is being done for employees, Sir, we are still in IV PC mode Basic pension same & static as at 1/11/1993, 21 long years, majority of pensioners above age 70 , especially in a democratic, egalitarian & Socialist pattern of Society, more so respecting & honouring the Sr Citizens & Super SrCitizens, who in their long, devoted & dedicated service of 35-40 yrs solidly laid the foundation, built a superstructure, rationalized principles & procedures of various departments in all tiers of the institution, hastened computerization & indeed, with all slings & arrows of outrageous misfortune of transfers,disturbance to family life & ever so many hazards of office, yet, with a smile displaying empathy for policyholders & all stakeholders, created records, broke records enabling the Institution LIC shine brilliant & lustrous, Sir, really an economic TajM ahal, Rock of Gibralter, participating in all Nation building activities, helping Aam Aadmi, social security to the economically weaker section of society as no other institution could have done or can do, Sir, pumping money for all 5-Year plans touching every Section of society & even assisting Govt in preserving stock market balance, all these multi-dimensional activities earning accolades of praise from PM & FM even rightly asserting with a sense of glow –there can be NO BETTER 3-LETTER WORD THAN LIC--& Sir, then more so, we humble elders & Sr Citizens certainly associating ourselves with a sense of attachment & pride of profession & performance,can we not get a slice of the cake ,with accepted principles tested & emerging from the fiery furnace of legal battle, with adjournments & postponements & vacation, but more after Appeal as also Review petitions were dismissed, 4 Courts, 10Judges have opined on similar lines , Punjab & Haryana HC certifying Hon SJ Rajasthan HC verdict & adding 12 % for the delay, Delhi HC acknowledging & adding “in rem” to all pensioners in same aggrieved category, SC clarificatory order dt 14 October, 2012 allowing retiral benefits from the date of eligibility, meaning date of retirement, what more is needed, Sir
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4)More so after the 23/6/2010 National Litigation Policy announced by Law Minister, it will be suffocating if the golden & guardian principles are not followed or not implemented, thrown to the wind by the Powers that be, as cardinal principle in focus was to ensure Govts/Instns do not become compulsive litigants & No Appeals or Reviews are made by them, more so when it concerns retirement or pensionary benefits. In our case, not one victory but a series of victories, Sir
5) Your Honour,pathetically we bring to your kind notice,with tears in our eyes that more than 12,000 pensioners have died out of app 48,000. All our letters, face to face meetings with the powers that be, & polite outbursts have evoked no response. Sad, death is treated as an event , no human touch or understanding ! You & You alone can bring sense & semblance of accountability & responsibility, without which Umpire or Beacon light, country will deteriorate & institutions will be crippled, as it happens today without a modicum of independent Corporate Governance, which must form the bedrock of decisions.
6) More than 14 years,money, labour, energy, inconveniences, delay, adjournments, court rules & procedures, adverse health, sacrifices,are being silently borne by pensioners, activists straining to maximum even in adversity, affecting their health. Lack of money power, lung power, muscle power, political power must be compensated & addressed only by High Courts & Supreme Court. Facts are clear as crystal, reason & logic of demands are powerful, no one can deny discrimination, violation of Fundamental Rights enshrined in constitution, Article 14, 16 & 21 , decades have rolled by, none to wipe the tears, demands are modest & legitimate, Court victories are galore & successive, one after another.
Lastly, it must not be forgotten & it can be rightly claimed, we Pensioners won the case & all was over perhaps on that bright day, 8th August 2013,
1)when our Petitioner Sri Asthana’s IA 12 & 13 were admitted,
2) LIC SLPs 29956 & 29957/2011 were dismissed &
3)This proviso only went against us, as SC Bench gave LIC a fresh lease of life to file fresh SLPs with caution & warning delay may not be normally condoned, but ultimately condoned such an enormous delay of 6 months & 23 days on 30 September, 2013.
4) While granting Leave to file the appeal and after hearing the appellant’s counsel the Hon’ble Supreme Court on 30.09.2013 ordered that “THERE SHALL BE NO STAY OF THE DIRECTIONS GIVEN BY THE LEARNED SINGLE JUDGE VIDE ORDER DATED 12.1.2010 PASSED IN SB C WP No. 6676 of 1998 AND CONNECTED MATTER.
7) We pensioners are approaching you, as a person of eminence, embracing a wide jurisdiction , an authority on diverse issues of law,constitutional,civil,companies,taxation,labour laws & also presided over many Full Benches. You issued new instructions on assuming charge as CJI, mentioning guidelines with form, affidavit & strict time window. Sir, this in reality is the Voice of discerning citizens of this country, but nullified, harassed, aggrieved , Sr citizens, Elders, bruised & battered by court delays, the high & mighty Institutions & UOI , escaping with adjournments galore. Even decided cases with many victories on the way, of course over a period of 12/13 years, the one & only Forum, Institution we lay fullest trust is the SC, Sir, of which you are the presiding deity & if u cannot restore balance & equity in an already tedious & tortuous legal battle , how can we get our Voice restored, after this painful but courageous, heroic battle by aged pensioners , very expensive & witnessing many deaths ? Sir, you got cracking on Day 1 by making it clear that there would be no more adjournments of cases on frivolous grounds . Sir, this is what has dragged on & on making pensioners frustrated & depressed, as time is wasted on narrow interpretations, pure technical grounds & on matters other than law.
8)You have floated the idea of having a Court of Appeal between HCs & SC on the lines functioning in South Africa. SA SC hears only constitutional matters . All appeals out of any civil or criminal cases are decided by CA. Sir, your agenda par excellence includes simplification of procedures, change in mindset of advocates & judges . You believe that SC represents ” no class, no caste, no majority, no minority”. This unique thought, Sir, beats even Abraham Lincoln’s definition of Democracy as govt “of the people, by the people, for the people”
9) Sir,you banned over- the- counter sales of acids ,awarded compensation to victims,allowed army personnel to vote in their place of posting,also dismissed Gen VK Singh plea to change date of birth, in a case, which saw the country’s 1st serving Army Chief dragging the govt to court, instrumental in passing orders making CBI free from any political interference ordering CBI does not require sanction from govt to prosecute Sr Officers in cases being monitored by Courts.
10) You heard a large number of important cases , including the one pertaining to irregularities in the allocation of coal blocks in which you famously described the CBI as a “caged parrot speaking in its masters voice “ New govt expresses hope giving more attention to justice,facing an uphill task of clearing a backlog of over 3 crore cases. ‘ Govt thinks that justice is a non-productive organ of the State, they hardly spend 0.5 % of the budget.’ We can feel the ache in your heart & the anguish in your mind. So too, Sir, we 45,000 pensioners of LIC ,by this Memorandum desired to ventilate our helplessness & grievance & have placed important facts before you.
11) In a 1st of its kind step,you want to create soon a post of Registrar of Appeal to scrutinize deferment pleas from lawyers “there cannot be any more adjournment at the drop of a hat.We can understand if there is demise or illness ”. The trusted canon of law is that ‘the relevance of justice lies only in its speedy & free delivery’. You have hit the nail on the head,Sir
12) When SLPs after SLPs,converted as CAs masquerade & getting clubbed , proving detrimental to pensioners,your positive & assertive intervention will deliver the fruits of judgements ,which is being denied to us under one pretext or another. With folded hands, we beg of you to bring this tortuous,expensive legal battle, which LIC/UOI can comfortably bea,r driving us to despair, to a happy,positive & satisfactory conclusion. for which act of kindness, benevolence & empathy, we the Entire Insurance Pensioners Fraternity shall for ever be eternally grateful. We salute you & bow before you
To : Hon’ Chief Justice of India, Sri Rajendra Mal Lodha
2) LIC SLPs 29956 & 29957/2011 were dismissed &
3)This proviso only went against us, as SC Bench gave LIC a fresh lease of life to file fresh SLPs with caution & warning delay may not be normally condoned, but ultimately condoned such an enormous delay of 6 months & 23 days on 30 September, 2013.
4) While granting Leave to file the appeal and after hearing the appellant’s counsel the Hon’ble Supreme Court on 30.09.2013 ordered that “THERE SHALL BE NO STAY OF THE DIRECTIONS GIVEN BY THE LEARNED SINGLE JUDGE VIDE ORDER DATED 12.1.2010 PASSED IN SB C WP No. 6676 of 1998 AND CONNECTED MATTER.
7) We pensioners are approaching you, as a person of eminence, embracing a wide jurisdiction , an authority on diverse issues of law,constitutional,civil,companies,taxation,labour laws & also presided over many Full Benches. You issued new instructions on assuming charge as CJI, mentioning guidelines with form, affidavit & strict time window. Sir, this in reality is the Voice of discerning citizens of this country, but nullified, harassed, aggrieved , Sr citizens, Elders, bruised & battered by court delays, the high & mighty Institutions & UOI , escaping with adjournments galore. Even decided cases with many victories on the way, of course over a period of 12/13 years, the one & only Forum, Institution we lay fullest trust is the SC, Sir, of which you are the presiding deity & if u cannot restore balance & equity in an already tedious & tortuous legal battle , how can we get our Voice restored, after this painful but courageous, heroic battle by aged pensioners , very expensive & witnessing many deaths ? Sir, you got cracking on Day 1 by making it clear that there would be no more adjournments of cases on frivolous grounds . Sir, this is what has dragged on & on making pensioners frustrated & depressed, as time is wasted on narrow interpretations, pure technical grounds & on matters other than law.
8)You have floated the idea of having a Court of Appeal between HCs & SC on the lines functioning in South Africa. SA SC hears only constitutional matters . All appeals out of any civil or criminal cases are decided by CA. Sir, your agenda par excellence includes simplification of procedures, change in mindset of advocates & judges . You believe that SC represents ” no class, no caste, no majority, no minority”. This unique thought, Sir, beats even Abraham Lincoln’s definition of Democracy as govt “of the people, by the people, for the people”
9) Sir,you banned over- the- counter sales of acids ,awarded compensation to victims,allowed army personnel to vote in their place of posting,also dismissed Gen VK Singh plea to change date of birth, in a case, which saw the country’s 1st serving Army Chief dragging the govt to court, instrumental in passing orders making CBI free from any political interference ordering CBI does not require sanction from govt to prosecute Sr Officers in cases being monitored by Courts.
10) You heard a large number of important cases , including the one pertaining to irregularities in the allocation of coal blocks in which you famously described the CBI as a “caged parrot speaking in its masters voice “ New govt expresses hope giving more attention to justice,facing an uphill task of clearing a backlog of over 3 crore cases. ‘ Govt thinks that justice is a non-productive organ of the State, they hardly spend 0.5 % of the budget.’ We can feel the ache in your heart & the anguish in your mind. So too, Sir, we 45,000 pensioners of LIC ,by this Memorandum desired to ventilate our helplessness & grievance & have placed important facts before you.
11) In a 1st of its kind step,you want to create soon a post of Registrar of Appeal to scrutinize deferment pleas from lawyers “there cannot be any more adjournment at the drop of a hat.We can understand if there is demise or illness ”. The trusted canon of law is that ‘the relevance of justice lies only in its speedy & free delivery’. You have hit the nail on the head,Sir
12) When SLPs after SLPs,converted as CAs masquerade & getting clubbed , proving detrimental to pensioners,your positive & assertive intervention will deliver the fruits of judgements ,which is being denied to us under one pretext or another. With folded hands, we beg of you to bring this tortuous,expensive legal battle, which LIC/UOI can comfortably bea,r driving us to despair, to a happy,positive & satisfactory conclusion. for which act of kindness, benevolence & empathy, we the Entire Insurance Pensioners Fraternity shall for ever be eternally grateful. We salute you & bow before you
Yours most respectfully & faithfully,
R.B.KISHORE,VP,ALL INDIA RETIRED INSURANCE EMPLOYEES’ FEDERATION,
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR(Retd), LIC: 12/6/2014
To : Hon’ Chief Justice of India, Sri Rajendra Mal Lodha