Meeting with the Finance Secretary

The Chairman must have said something during his talks about issue of DA/DR anomalies, which we said for the present the DA/DR issue has become stale since it came to an end on 31/7/1997 in case the pensions are revised on that date and for the present we have come about the revisions of pensions. However, we said that LIC Board had taken a decision to remove the DA/DR anomaly way back in November, 2001 wherein the Central Government was fully represented since two Jt. Secretaries from the Finance (Insurance) Department were the members besides the Chairman and two Managing Directors, who are themselves representatives of the CG being on their roles and out of two private members one had raised this issued. The Resolution was unanimously approved still it was left for the approval of the CG, which has not come within these 13 years though it was not necessary as the Counsel for the CG had stated before the HC and was never controverted by the CG, still LIC is continuing Proxy litigation just to harass the poor pensioners. Mr. Sandhu expressed his dissatisfaction on this.

Shri Sandhu then called Mr. Srivastava, Director Insurance (LIC) who showed his ignorance about the two issues and the litigations. Then Mr. Sandhu asked the Director to collect all the details from LIC about the reasons for not implementing the judgments and unwanted litigations without
the notice of the Director.

We cannot definitely say what the Chairman told Mr. Sandhu but felt the Chairman told him that the issue of DA/DR anomaly was referred to the Govt. and the issue of revision was a wider one involving Banks and GIC Pensioners also. We immediately replies it is strange the LIC Chairman is interested in the pensioners of Banks instead of his own Corporaton and detailed the different procedure and states of the Banks and LIC, there is no parity whatsoever. Further what we are demanding is the implementation of the Notifications and not even a single paisa over that, Notifications do not say that these revised pay scales will not be applied to retired employees while as per the Pension Rules and various judgments we are and will remain the employees, and the Notifications are issued under the provisions of the LIC Act, then where is the question of prolonged litigation.

It seemed the Chairman wanted to know as to who were the people who called on him(Mr. Sandhu) and Mr. Sandhu replied and just repeated that many people have come from the Federation.

Thereafter Mr. Sandhu asked Mr. Shrivastava to look into the matter of DA/DR anomalies and clear the same. He reverted to us to say that he was fully convinced of our problem of no revision /upgradation of pensions for all these years and that HC Order was also in our favour, but the same was a wider issue involving Banks and GIC Pensioners also. But , he said ‘let us see and we will try to find out a way’. The meeting was then over with thanks to Mr. Sandhu and a photograph.

We then met Mr. Ravi Shankar ,Secretary Deptt Of Pensions GOI. He went through our memorandum. Two jt. Secretaries of his deptt. were also present. They asked for many clarifications which were duly given to them.

The Secretary informed us that his Deptt. was responsible for solving problems of the Central Govt Pensioners and that this problem of LIC Pensioners had come to him for the first time. He may not take any decision on our problem of revision/upgradation of pension in LIC because being beyond his jurisdiction but assured us that he was fully convinced of our case and that it was not a happy position that the pensions in LIC have not been revised/upgraded all these years and more so when the Cours judgments are also in our favour. He assured us time and again that he would write to the Secretary Deptt Of Financial Services recommending to consider the issue with a positive frame of mind and sympathetically and give a copy of his letter to us also and would help us in the manner to follow up the issue on our behalf.

The meeting was then over with thanks to the Secretary and the two Jt. Secretaries and a few photographs.

Thus we feel it is a good development and we must pray to the Almighty for early success.

KML ASTHANA
42A, MOTI NAGAR, GURJAR KI THADIM,
GOPALPURA BYEPASS,
JAIPUR-302019

ALL INDIA RETIRED INSURANCE EMPLOYEES FEDERATION

(Regd)

Head Office at Indore

President: Shri S.K. Shukla
Gen. Secy: Shri V.C. Jain
Vice President Northern Zone: K.M.L. Asthana

42A, Moti Nagar,Gurjat ki Thadi,
Gopalpura Byepass,
Jaipur-302019
Ph: 0141-2299575
August 22, 2014

To

Hon’ble the Secretary,
Financial Services,
Government of India,
New Delhi

Hon’ble Sir,

Sub: Memorandum regarding grievances of the retired employees of Life Insurance Corporation of India in the matter of pensions.

                                    *** 

          First of all we wish to submit that this Federation is an All India body of the pensioners and it looks after the welfare of its members all over the country through its various Divisional Associations. The members of this Federation through their respective Associations belong to both Life Insurance Corporation of India and the four General Insurance Companies functioning under the administrative control of the Government of India.

The members are senior citizens and a major part of them have even crossed the age of 80 years and are on the verge of leaving this world, rather no day passes when one or the other leaves for his heavenly abode.

Life Insurance Corporation of India is an Institution constituted under the Life Insurance Corporation Act, 1956 and as per the powers vested in the Central Government various Rules and Regulations concerning different subjects have been framed, which include the Pension Rules, 1995. For purposes of management of the affairs the Board has been constituted and it looks after the day to day functioning of the Corporation independently within the four walls of the Rules framed and the Government of India has no role to play in the day to day functioning of the Board and the implementation of the Rules.

For purposes of implementation of the Pension Rules the Chairman has been vested with the powers by virtue of Rule 55 of the Pension Rules and he has been revising the pensions of the employees in exercise of these powers.

As per the Pension Rules a Pensioner is an employee who is getting pension and the term Pay has also been defined therein with the rate of pension. Thus the retired employees are entitled to get the pension at the stipulated rate of the pay which is applicable to such an employee in the pay scale as is applicable on the date of payment of pension.

The pension Rules have come into effect from 1/8/1993 but all those employees who have retired on and after 1/1/1986 were allowed to be governed by these Rules subject to their refunding the PF amount paid to them and give their option to be governed by the Pension Rules.

After coming into force of the Pension Rules the pay scales have been revised from time to time for example, on 1/8/1992, 1/8/1997, 1/8/2002 and 1/8/2007 for the present while the pay revisions effective from 1/8/2012 are yet to come.

However, in the LIC of India once a pension has been fixed as on the date of retirement, whether right or wrong, the same is not revised until and unless such an aggrieved employee is dragged into litigation upto the Hon’ble Supreme Court. Even when there are mistakes committed by them they are not corrected without dragging him into long drawn litigation on false and frivolous grounds, this in most cases result in the retired employee passing away without enjoying the fruits of his pension.

As submitted above the revised pay scales were substituted from time to time effective from the dates given above, but in the case of retired employees their pensions are not revised. This has created several classes of pensioners on the basis of dates of retirement and grave discrimination and injustice is being done to them. In this connection we are submitting a statement showing the comparative position of the pensions of the retired employees at the maximum of their pay scales as and when the revised pay scales came into force: 

CADRE	31/7/1992	1/8/1992 TO 31/7/1997	1/8/1997 TO 31/7/2002	1/8/2002 TO 31/7/2007	1/8/2007
ASSTT	1430	2750	4498	6825	10525
Steno	1545	2980	5038		11785
Sec. Head	1610	3120	5238	0	12228
HGA	1730	3350	5598	8438	13145
Supdts	1850	3580	5958	0	0
AAO	2130	4255	7008	10455	16320
AO	2260	4485	7368	11015	17230
ADM	2525	4975	8125	12315	19630
DM	2675	5225	8625	13290	21430
SDM	2975	5725	9500	14665	23980
ZM	3275	6325	10600	16265	26805
ED	3500	7000	11800	18050	29925
DO	1940	3760	6150	9255	14433

It would be apparent from the above table that there has occurred serious discrimination both vertically and horizontally.  By way of example it is submitted that an Executive Director who was granted a pension of Rs. 3500 when he retired in the year 1992 gets much lesser pension than his counter part who has retired on an after 1/8/2007 since he has been given a pension of Rs. 29,925=00 and if compared it is compared vertically when the same ED is getting a pension of Rs. 3,500 the Assistant (Class III) who has retired on and after 1/8/2007 is getting a pension of Rs. 10,525=00. This is the same position with all cadres as would be clear on an analysis of above statement.  For detailed analysis the step by step position of all the cadres of employees is also enclosed for ready reference. These figures represent the pay and the 50% of this will be the pension as per Pension Rules.

The old retirees are not able to meet with the essential requirements to live a life with suitable and adequate food and medicines even what to say their dignity and reputation in the society. In this manner there has been breach of the fundamental rights of the retired employees as guaranteed under Articles 14, 16 and 21 of the Constitution of India.

Several representations were made from all over India but the Management of LIC kept their eyes closed and ears filled with cotton and were adamant not to give any relief, which was within the power of the Chairman in exercise of powers vested under Rule 55 of the Pension Rules.

It is pertinent to substituted pay scales are notified thereby substituting the pay scales as were contained in the Revision Rules of 1982 notionally and effectively from the dates as notified in the Notifications, which are the dates given above.  These pay scales are applicable to all the employees whether in service or retired, since no Notification has so far provided that these substituted pay scales will not be applicable to retired employees. Consequently the Chairman has been revising the pensions applying the substituted pay scales from their effective date by issue of Circulars in exercise of powers vested in him under Rule 55 of the Pension Rules.  The pensions of the employees who retired earlier to that date are carefully avoided to be revised.  Thus mini-classes have been created on the basis of dates of retirement within the homogenous class of pensioners.  It is needless to submit that this miniclassification is not permissible under the Constitution of India and has been deprecated time and again by the Hon’ble Supreme Court.

  Under these circumstances some of the members of the Federation’s Units at Jaipur and Udaipur had filed the Writ Petition No. 654 of 2007 in the matter of removal of this discrimination. This writ petition was allowed by the Rajasthan High Court by its judgment dated 12/1/2010.  LIC challenged the same before the Division Bench by filing appeals, which were also dismissed on 21/1/2011. Not satisfied with this the LIC preferred Review petitions in the Rajasthan High Court and also SLP in the Hon’ble Supreme Court.  The SLP were dismissed on 15/7/2011 with the direction to Rajasthan High Court to decide the review petitions within three months.  On this the Review petitions were taken up and dismissed by the Rajasthan High Court on 19/8/2011.  Still the greed of the management was not fulfilled of harassing the pensioners and denying them their due and they preferred further SLPs against the judgment in review, which were also dismissed on 8/8/2013.  The litigation has been advanced further by filing fresh SLPs before the Hon’ble Supreme Court, wherein the interim prayer for staying the operation was rejected vide order dated 30/9/2013.  But LIC is not prepared to give due relief to the retired employees.

Not only the above, some members in Chandigarh Division had also filed a similar writ petition as in Rajasthan High Court for the same relief of revision of pensions fixing them in the revised pay scales as and when they came into effect.  The two Judge Bench of Punjab and Haryana High Court also allowed the said writ petition vide its judgment dated 9/9/2012 on the basis of the judgments of Rajasthan High Court. As against this judgment also the LIC has filed SLPs before the Supreme Court but in these SLPs the interim relief has been dismissed twice, still LIC is not prepared to grant the relief to the dwindling class of age old pensioners.

Similarly, some employees based at Delhi had also filed a writ petition in Delhi High Court for the same relief of revision of pensions. The two Judges Bench of the Delhi High Court also granted the relief as sought for on the basis of judgment of Rajasthan High Court but LIC did not feel satisfied and preferred SLP wherein also the Hon’ble Supreme Court did not grant any stay.

Thus you will kindly appreciate that notwithstanding the fact that Courts after Courts are giving verdicts in favour of the retired employees and the Hon’ble Supreme Court not granting any relief to it yet LIC is not granting the reliefs to the retired employees, while as an employer it has the Constitutional obligation to look into the welfare of its employees and the Hon’ble Supreme Court has ruled that an employee is employee until his death. By dragging the retired employees it is not obeying their Constitutional obligations also instead making merry in harassing them in multiple ways and spending the Policyholders’ money on unwanted litigation.

That the National Litigation Policy was announced in the year 2010 by the Central Government, which is applicable to LIC of India.  Amongst other things this National Litigation Policy also provides –

“In Service Matters, no appeal will be filed in cases where: (a) the matter pertains to an individual grievance without any major repercussion; (b) the matter pertains to a case of pension or retirement benefits without involving any principle and without setting any precedent or financial implications”.

But LIC does not care for this National Litigation Policy.

          Sir, the members of the Petitioner Federation are all retired employees in the late December of their lives and are passing away every day without the relief in their day to day life since they are unable to meet with the increasing prices of daily utility articles, more particularly on the cure of their ailments which are the order of the later years of life.

          We the retired employees have great hopes from the Policies which are being announced by the Government of India under the new regime and we also are expecting ACCHE DIN and as such this submission is being made seeking your valuable assistance to the retired employees with a direction to LIC of India to immediately implement the judgments and revise the Pensions of the pensioners with every wage revision and pay the revised pensions instead of involving into futile and frivolous unending litigation.

Humbly submitted

for All India Retired Insurance Employees Federation 

(K.M.L. Asthana)

Vice President, Northern Zone