A Division Bench of the court rules on the pleas that contended that the effect of the amendments brought in 2014 to the Employees’ Pension Scheme was to create different classes of pensions.
A Division Bench of the Kerala High Court on October 12 set aside the Employees’ Pension (Amendment) Scheme that reduces drastically the pension payable to employees.
The Bench, comprising Justice Surendra Mohan and Justice A.M. Babu, while allowing a batch of 507 writ petitions filed by various employees’ organisations challenging the amendment, also set aside the orders of the Employees Provident Fund Organisation declining to grant opportunities to the petitioners to exercise a joint option to remit contributions to the Employees Pension Scheme on the basis of actual salaries drawn by them
The court also ordered that employees shall be entitled to exercise the option stipulated by the scheme without being restricted in doing so by the insistence on the date.
The Bench observed that the attempt to maintain the stability of the fund by reducing the pension would only be counter-productive and defeat the very purpose of the enactment.
The petitioners contended that the effect of the amendments brought in 2014 to the Employees’ Pension Scheme was to create different classes of pensions on the basis of the date i.e. September 1, 2014.
Source: Read Full Article
