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In a petition filed before the Delhi High Court, the court has held that an accident occurring during the return to duty shall be construed as an accident occurring while on duty.
The petition was filed by the widow of a CRPF officer, who, according to the Court of Inquiry, was posted in Jammu and Kashmir. The Assistant Sub Inspector was granted casual leave on the 16th of February and allowed to avail the 15th (Sunday) and 17th February (government holiday) as holidays as well.
On the journey back to his posting on 16th February, the deceased was hit by a truck, resulting in his death. His widow plead for being granted extraordinary family pension and an ex gratia payment of compensation.
As per its findings, the Court of Inquiry concluded that the officer was traveling at public expense when he met with the accident, and recommended that his widow was eligible to receive extraordinary family pension along with other pensioner benefits available to government employees.
This recommendation was rejected by the Department of Pension and Pensioners which did not consider the death to be due to, and in due course of active service. But the Division Bench agreed with the recommendations of the Court of Inquiry.
Relying on SC’s decisions in the case of Madan Singh Shekhawat v. Union of India, and Union of India and Another v. Ex-Naik Surendra Pandey, the bench comprising of Justices IS Mehta and S Muralidhar held that the accident occurred while the deceased was on authorized leave and journey and therefore shall be taken to have occurred while the deceased was on duty.
The grounds of rejection of Court of Inquiry’s recommendation for extraordinary pension and compensation given by the Department of Pension and Pensioners were held to be untenable. The court set aside the Department’s order denying the petitioner’s claim and directed the respondent state to grant the claim within twelve months along with 12% interest from the date it was due till the date it is paid.
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