New Delhi, Dec 26 (IANS): The Delhi High Court has ordered the Border Security Force (BSF) to process the benefit of the third financial upgradation under the Modified Assured Career Progression (MACP) Scheme to the personnel who have completed 30 years of service.

A bench of Justices Navin Chawla and Shalinder Kaur was hearing a plea by retired BSF personnel challenging the rejection of their representations for grant of the third financial upgradation under the MACP Scheme for fixing their pension.

The petitioners sought the extension of the benefit of the 3rd MACP upon the completion of 30 years of service in their cadre before them attaining the age of 60 years, and sought revision of the basic pay and their pension.

The petitioners had joined the BSF on various dates at their respective ranks in the General Duty and Radio Cadre. Initially, they were serving as Personnel Below Officers Rank (PBORs), and, with the progression of time, the petitioners were promoted to the non-gazetted officers rank (i.e. Assistant Sub-Inspectors, Sub-Inspectors, and Inspectors).

In 2019, the Delhi High Court had held that having two different ages of superannuation for different ranks is discriminatory and unconstitutional, and directed for a uniform retirement age for all Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) personnel, regardless of rank, within 4 months.

It had said that for the purposes of calculation of retiral benefits, including pension and gratuity, the differential period (in the event of enhancement of the retirement age) will be added to the period of service actually rendered by each of them.

"In other words, their notional date of retirement would be arrived at by adding the differential years to their actual date of retirement. On such calculation, they would be entitled to the arrears of retirement benefits after adjusting the amount already paid," the Delhi HC had ruled.

Earlier, under the BSF Act and Rules, the age of superannuation of officers from the rank of Constable to Commandant was 57 years, and from Deputy Inspector General of Police to Director General was 60 years.

In their plea filed before the Delhi High Court, the petitioners claimed that they completed 30 years of service from the date of their entering into the entry grade, between the period of them attaining the age of 57 and 60 years, adding that if the Union Ministry of Home Affairs had implemented the recommendations of the 7th Central Pay Commission in a timely manner, they would not have been made to retire at the age of 57 years, and they would have served till the enhanced age of 60 years, when they would have completed 30 years of service.

They added that the differential period of 3 years, gained on account of the enhancement of the age of superannuation to 60 years, should be deemed to be ‘regular service’ for the purpose of computation of benefits like the MACP to personnel like the petitioners, who had not crossed the age of 60 years on the date of 2019 judgement.

It is for this reason that the court had directed the authorities to provide three equivalent annual increments of basic pay to the petitioners, as these annual increments are given only upon regular service, the petitioners further contended.

They claimed that applying the same yard-stick to the MACP Scheme, the petitioners are entitled to the benefit of financial upgradation under the MACP Scheme upon completion of 30 years of regular service and that the same would have fixed the pay of the petitioners to the next available grade pay.

The petitioners added that the said upgradation would also have enhanced the quantum of the basic pay for calculation of their pension to the next available grade pay but the said benefit of refixation was never granted.

They claimed that since the date of completion of 30 years of service for each of the petitioners falls prior to the enhanced age of superannuation, they are entitled to all such benefits which would have been granted to them had they been serving at the relevant time.

Further, the petitioners argued that as the third financial upgradation under the MACP Scheme directly affects the amount of pension and arrears payable by enhancing the quantum of basic pay, therefore, in terms of the 2019 judgement, the enhanced age of superannuation should be considered for determining the applicability of the third financial upgradation under the MACP Scheme.

In its judgment, the Delhi High Court said that once the authorities have themselves extended to the petitioners the increments that would have been earned by them had they served till the age of 60 years, by treating the petitioners to have been in service till the age of 60 years, the authorities now cannot plead that the other consequential benefits emanating from the extension of service, including the MACP, will not be granted to the petitioners.

Allowing the petition, the Delhi HC ordered to place the case of the petitioners before a Screening Committee appointed to evaluate the claim of the officials for the MACP, which would consider their case by treating them to have remained in ‘regular service’ till they attained the age of 60 years, and accordingly process their claims for the grant of the benefit of the 3rd financial upgradation in accordance with the MACP Scheme.

"The said exercise must be completed within a period of three months and in case the petitioners are found entitled to grant of the benefit of the 3rd MACP, the relief in that regard be released to the petitioners and their pension be accordingly modified with retrospective effect," it said, clarifying that the grant of the 3rd MACP will only be notional and the petitioners will not be entitled to extra pay.