Team Goemkarponn
PANAJI: The Goa government informed the Supreme Court on Friday (November 22) that it has brought the pension payment norms for employees of the Bombay High Court’s Goa Bench in line with those of the principal Bench at Mumbai and the Nagpur and Aurangabad benches.
A bench of Justice Abhay S Oka and Justice Augustine George Masih disposed of a suo moto case concerning the grievances of former employees of the Bombay High Court’s Goa Bench over delayed pensionary benefits.
Despite major changes from the original draft, the Supreme Court last week chastised the State of Goa for publishing modified service rules in the Chief Justice’s name. The Chief Secretary was instructed to provide an explanation for the adjustments after the court voiced its disbelief at this rationale.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the court today that the controversial service rules had been replaced and that the newly announced regulations matched the draft that the Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court had sent.
\The Chief Secretary of Goa submitted an affidavit and an unconditional apologies for previous deviations, according to Justice Oka. During the proceedings, the Chief Secretary participated by video conference.
The Court noted that the November 15, 2024, updated guidelines followed the draft that the Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court had provided. The Supreme Court reaffirmed that the new regulations shall be followed for the refixation of pay and the payment of arrears, citing the ruling of the Bombay High Court dated July 30, 2024.
The dispute started when retired Goa Bench employees wrote to emphasize pension and retirement benefit delays, pointing out that some pensioners had been waiting for payments for three to seven years. The Supreme Court took suo moto cognizance in April after hearing about the retirees’ financial difficulties, including a suicide connected to protracted delays.
