Ex-servicemen entitled to pension on basis of rank last held: AFT

The pension payable to ex-servicemen should be calculated on the basis of the rank they held last before retiring from service even if it was held for a day and more for months as perceived, the Regional Bench of the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT) in Chennai has reiterated.

Justice V. Periya Karuppiah and administrative member Lt. Gen. K. Surendra Nath (Retd.) of the Bench also held that all ex-servicemen were entitled to their pension on the basis of their rank last held and not just for pensioners, who retired before 1996.

Citing recommendations made by the Sixth Central Pay Commission and an order by the Ministry of Defence, the Bench said, “We have already observed that the requirement of 10 months’ service in the last held rank or Group to earn pension of that rank or Group has been removed and it is sufficient for a personnel of Armed Forces to hold the post even for one day at the time of his discharge to earn pension for that rank.”

When the benefits conferred upon the Armed Forces personnel on the changed policies have been laid, “it ought to have been issued by the respondents without any request from the applicant,” they said in a recent order.

P. Gopalakrishnan, who retired as Junior Warrant Officer (JWO) in the Indian Air Force, applied for an appeal seeking the AFT to direct authorities to re-fix his pension in his last held rank as JWO in X Group from the date of his discharge in 2005 and sought for payment of arrears.

After hearing arguments from both sides, the Bench directed the authorities to issue corrigendum for the restructured pension in the rank of JWO and to pay the arrears of revised pensions within three months.