Service Law: Death-cum-Retirement gratuity – Payment of – To heirs/dependent of deceased employee, when employee died before he could exercise the option of retirement – Respondentwife of deceased employee applied for payment of gratuity due to her husband, but the same was rejected on ground that he had not opted for retirement at the age of 60 years – Writ proceedings – High Court held that respondent would be entitled to the benefit of Government Order dated 16.9.2009 and to the benefit of deathcum-retirement gratuity being heir of the deceased employee – Justification of – Held: Justified – Respondent’s husband would have completed 60 years of his age on 30.06.2011 – As per Government Order dated 16.09.2009, he would have exercised his option to retire at the age of 60 years on or before 1.7.2010 – However, before he could exercise the option, he died – In fact, he had died even prior to the Government order – He had died on 11.08.2009 whereas the Government order is dated 16.9.2009 – Therefore, there was no chance for him to exercise any option at all – Death-cum-retirement gratuity is a benevolent scheme and the same was extended by the High Court to the respondent she being heir/ dependent of the deceased employee – No interference called for.
As published in the Supreme Court Reports, Supreme Court of India. Text from the Indian Supreme Court Judgments open data set (Dattam Labs), CC BY 4.0.
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