High Court comes to aid of CRPF official’s widow

Saurabh Malik

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, June 26

Nearly nine years after a CRPF official posted in the “hotbed of terrorism” in Jammu and Kashmir died, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has quashed an order declining the grant of extraordinary family pension to his widow.

The Court of Inquiry in its report had placed the death under “Category C” on the ground that it was “due to accident in the performance of duties of the Government of India”. Family pension, too, was awarded to the petitioner-wife.

But the category was changed after a representation was filed before the authorities concerned for extraordinary family pension. Accordingly, a recommendation was made that the petitioner was not even entitled to family pension and an amended order was passed in March 2014, denying the claim.

Taking up the petition by Ompati Devi against the Union of India and other respondents, Justice GS Sandhawalia asserted that the respondents chose to shift the category on account of the fact that the petitioner had filed a representation for the grant of extraordinary family pension. In the peculiar facts and circumstances of the case, it was totally uncalled for.

Referring to the averments in the petition, Justice Sandhawalia asserted that the petitioner’s husband died in Ramban, J&K, on September 21, 2010. After having his dinner, he reported discomfort with giddiness and convulsion and fainted in the bed before he was taken to the district hospital, where the medical officer declared him brought dead.

The Court of Inquiry found that the official was not suffering from any disease and had been placed under “medical shape-I” category in the annual medical examination. He was not having any domestic problem and had even qualified an examination in the first chance. Therefore, his death was put under “Category C”.

Justice Sandhawalia added that the facts showed that the respondents initially treated the death under Category C after taking into consideration his physical fitness and also the fact that he was not a chronic patient. But, thereafter, they changed the category, depriving the petitioner of extraordinary family pension.

“It is not disputed that the deceased was posted at Ramban in J&K, which has been the hotbed of terrorism for the last several years and the armed forces are under consistent threat of their lives at all times and the factum of such hostile work environment cannot be ignored. Therefore, now the respondents cannot wriggle out of the earlier findings recorded regarding the fitness of the deceased and the fact that death had occurred which could be caused due to continued exposure to a hostile work environment,” Justice Sandhawalia added.

Justice Sandhawalia directed the respondents to process the petitioner’s case and give all necessary benefits along with arrears within three months of receiving the order’s copy.