Calcutta Port Trust & Ors vs Anadi Kumar Das (Capt) & Anr

2. Respondent No.1 joined the service of appellant No.1-The Calcutta Port Trust on 19.8.1957 as Class-I Officer. He was posted as Chief Officer (D&D) under the Marine Department of the then Commissioners for the Port of Calcutta, which was re-named as the Calcutta Port Trust on 19.8.1957. He got several promotions and ultimately retired from service w.e.f.1.4.1983 under the Voluntary Retirement Scheme.

3. At the time of appointment of respondent No.1, there was no Pension Scheme for the employees of appellant No.1 and they were given monetary benefits of the Contributory Provident Fund Scheme (CPF Scheme). For the first time, Pension Scheme was introduced for the Commissioner’s employees vide circular dated 29th May, 1962 and made effective from 1.6.1962. All the existing employees, who were in service on 1.6.1962 were given the choice to opt for the Pension Scheme, but respondent No.1 did not exercise the option.

6. In June 2001, the Government of India announced liberalized pensionary benefits for retired Class-I and Class-II officers of Major Ports. This resulted in manifold increase in the pension payable to them. With a view to take advantage of the policy decision taken by the Central Government, respondent No.1 submitted application dated 23.7.2001 for grant of permission to exercise of option in terms of circulars dated 29.12.1984 or 19.2.1986. The relevant portions of the application read as under:

11. The Division Bench of the High Court allowed the appeal filed by respondent No.1 and reversed the order of the learned Single Judge by observing that the circulars issued by appellant No.1 were neither published in the daily newspaper nor the same were circulated among the concerned retired employees. The Division Bench was of the view that appellant No.1 was duty bound to publish the circulars in the daily newspapers or circulate the same amongst all the concerned retired employees and that the learned Single Judge committed an error by declining relief to him on the assumption that he must be aware of the circulars issued in 1984 and 1986. The relevant portions of the judgment of the Division Bench are extracted below:

A true copy of the said circular which your petitioner collected from the petitioner's association of the Calcutta Port Trust subsequently sometimes in early July, 2001 is annexed hereto and is marked with Annexure "A" to this petition.

A true copy of the said notice/circular which you petitioner collected subsequently sometimes in early July 2001 is annexed hereto and is marked with Annexure "B" to this petition.

A true copy of the said representation which was received by the concerned respondents on 27th July, 2001 is Annexed hereto and is marked with Annexure "C" to this petition.”

24. In the result, the appeal is allowed, the impugned judgment and order are set aside and the one passed by the learned Single Judge is restored. However, keeping in view the peculiar facts of this case, we direct the appellants to allow respondent No.1 to exercise option in terms of circular dated 19.2.1986. The needful be done within a period of two months from the date of receipt of copy of this judgment. At the same time, we make it clear that this direction shall not be treated as a precedent for other cases pending before the High Court, which shall be decided in the backdrop of their own facts.