No Family Pension if Divorce Occurs After Fathers Death Big Ruling by Calcutta High Court

Family Pension: The Calcutta High Court has delivered a significant judgment regarding family pension eligibility for divorced daughters of Central Government employees. Clearing the air on long-standing ambiguities, the court has set a precedent stating that if a daughter gets divorced after the death of her father, she holds no right to claim her father’s family pension. This ruling was passed by the division bench comprising Justice Sujoy Paul and Justice Partha Sarathi Sen on Monday.

Background and Timeline of the Case

The case revolves around a plea filed by the daughter of a deceased Central Government employee. The sequence of events is as follows:

• 1996: The petitioner’s father retired from Central Government service.
• 2003: The retired employee passed away. At that time, his daughter was married and living with her husband.
• 2016: Approximately 13 years after her father’s death, the daughter got divorced.

Facing severe financial hardship post-divorce, the woman applied for her father’s family pension. She argued that as a daughter facing financial crisis, she was entitled to the pension. Initially, the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) ruled in her favor, ordering the Centre to grant the pension on humanitarian grounds. However, the Central Government challenged this order in the Calcutta High Court.

Court’s Observation and Final Verdict

The division bench of the Calcutta High Court set aside the CAT’s verdict and upheld the Central Government’s decision. The primary logic behind this ruling was the concept of ‘dependency’.

The High Court observed that the core objective of a family pension is to provide financial security to those dependent on the deceased employee. At the time of her father’s death, the woman was married and dependent on her husband, not on her father. Therefore, she cannot suddenly claim her father’s pension years later simply because her marital status changed long after his demise.

Arguments by the Central Government

Representing the Centre, lawyer Fatik Chandra Das presented strong arguments. He stated that under the rules, only those family members who were directly dependent on the retired employee at the time of their death are eligible for a share of the pension. Since the daughter was married in 2003 when her father died, she does not fall under this category. She cannot claim the pension now for her own needs after so many years.

What Do the Rules Say?

Regarding family pension, a 2013 directive by the Centre clarified that if a divorce occurs after the death of both parents, the daughter is not eligible for the pension. However, a 2017 order stated that if divorce proceedings had been initiated while the parents were still alive, the daughter could be considered for the pension.

In the present case, no divorce proceedings were pending or initiated during the father’s lifetime. Consequently, the High Court has made it clear that even if a divorced daughter returns to her parental home, she will not be entitled to family pension if the divorce took place after her father’s death.