A mere speech made by the Finance Minister without taking further steps to give the benefit of enhanced ceiling limit of gratuity amount specifically in the case of the respondent Bank is of numberhelp to the petitioners.
The respondents companytested the claim of the petitioners stating that the petitioners were entitled to payment of gratuity as provided under the Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972 for short the Act .
2.5 lakhs with effect from 1.4.1995 and Rs.
Government servants and industrial workers are governed by different set of rules.
2.5 lakhs with effect from 1.4.1995 and Rs.
138 of 2001 J U D G M E N T Shivaraj V. Patil J. Petitioners in the first writ petition are the individual pensioners and the petitioners in the second writ petition are associations representing the pensioners.
Hence the respondent Bank cannot take a different stand and discriminate its employees in the matter of payment of gratuity.
Since the petitioners had retired prior to the said date, were number entitled to the enhanced gratuity limit.
2.5 lakhs with effect from 1.4.1995 and Rs.
3,26,349/ and at least that amount should have been paid.
The respondent Bank has pointed out that the officers of the Bank are governed by the pension rules and are paid gratuity, only in terms of the Act while the companypassionate gratuity is a separate scheme to provide succour to the bereaved families of the officers who die in harness and the effective date of revision is fixed by the Executive Committee of the Central Board at Rs.
Its employees are entitled for the following benefits at the time of retirement Contributory Provident Fund Pension and Gratuity, subject to maximum prescribed under the Act.
Assuming that the respondent Bank had made profit, the claims of the petitioners cannot be allowed unless there is a sustainable foundation for such a claim.
The Act was amended in 1998 fixing the ceiling of payment of gratuity at Rs.
Each organization has its own set of rules companysidering the nature of work business performance by it and the staff strength, both qualitatively and quantitatively.
3.5 lakhs effective from 24.9.1997.
3.5 lakhs with effect from 1.1.1996.
The petitioners in these writ petitions have sought for a declaration that the employees of the State Bank of India are entitled to enhanced gratuity of Rs.
By the Amendment Act, 1998, the ceiling limit was raised to Rs.
1 lakh the question of enhancing this ceiling to Rs.
1 lakh to 2.5 lakhs with effect from 24.9.1997.
3.50 lakhs with effect from 1.1.1996, and for direction to the respondent State Bank of India to give enhanced gratuity amount to the retired employees with interest.
1 lakh with effect from 1.1.1986, Rs.
The recommendations of the 5th Pay Commission are applicable to Government servants only and number to the industrial workers including the petitioners who were the bank employees.
2.50 lakhs was companysidered and decided to amend the Act accordingly.
It is also stated that the service rules in force in one organization, especially statutory bodies, cannot be applied mathematically to other organizations statutory bodies.
3.50 lakhs to be effective from 24.9.1997.
3.5 lakhs with effect from 1.1.1996.However, the Standing Committee of Parliament on Labour and Welfare after examining the provisions of the said Bill and Ordinance recommended that the ceiling limit on gratuity should be raised from Rs.
2.50 lakhs with effect from 1.4.1995 and Rs.
The 5th Pay Commission recommendations are in relation to the Central Government employees.
The claim for payment of enhanced gratuity amount is made by the employees who retired prior to 24.9.1997.
The service rules governing employees of RBI IDBI and Central Government employees are different.
1 lakh to Rs.
Prior to 24.9.1997, the ceiling on maximum amount of gratuity payable under the Act was Rs.
On the other hand, for the respondents, submissions were made supporting the stand of the Bank pointing out that the petitioners were retired prior to 24.9.1997.
However, the answering respondent Bank, being an independent statutory body, has its own rules.
Hence, the gratuity under the Act companyld have been paid keeping the ceiling at Rs.
So far petitioner number 1 in the first writ petition is companycerned, the respondent Bank itself has worked out a gratuity amount at Rs.
With WRIT PETITION C NO.
Having regard to the 5th Pay Commission recommendations and the speech of the Union Finance Minister made while presenting Union Budget for the year 1997 98, the respondent Bank should have given the benefit of enhanced gratuity to the petitioners even though they had retired prior to 24.9.1997 as was done in respect of Central Government Employees and other Government undertakings to maintain uniformity.
3.5 lakhs with effect from 1.1.1996.
The basis for their claim is the recommendation of the 5h Pay Commission, the speech made by Union Finance Minister while presenting the Central Government Budget for the year 1997 98 and the Central Government and other several Government sector undertakings giving revised ceiling on gratuity with effect from 1.4.1995 and 1.1.1996.
Further even the rules of different undertakings governing service companyditions may be / are different.
The respondent Bank is in profit and even under scheme in respect of payment of companypassionate gratuity, the Bank is giving Rs.
The 5th Pay Commission recommendations and the speech of Finance Minister made while presenting the Budget for the year 1997 98 and the circulars or memorandums issued by the Central Government or other Government undertakings giving benefit of enhanced ceiling limit of gratuity amount either from 1.4.1995 or from 1.1.1996 as the case may be, are neither binding on the respondent Bank number they can be applied to the petitioners who have retired prior to 24.9.1997.
1 lakh.
Facts giving rise to the filing of the writ petitions and the questions of law raised are similar.
