Calcutta High Court Denies Pension Claim to Freedom Fighter's Daughter Due to Delays
‘Honour, gratitude, not unbridled right’: Calcutta High Court denies freedom fighter pension to daughter over 22-year delay
The Indian Express
Image: The Indian Express
The Calcutta High Court denied a pension claim to Kumari Sadhana Bera, daughter of a Quit India Movement participant, citing a 22-year delay in her application. The court emphasized that the freedom fighter pension scheme is a mark of honour, not an unqualified right, and that all eligibility conditions must be met.
- 01The court ruled that the freedom fighter pension scheme is a mark of honour, not an unqualified right.
- 02Kumari Sadhana Bera waited 22 years to pursue her pension claim, which contributed to the denial.
- 03The court noted that she was not a dependent at the time of her father's death in 1996.
- 04All conditions of the pension scheme must be fulfilled for eligibility.
- 05The daughter's claims were rejected due to unexplained delays and failure to meet eligibility criteria.
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The Calcutta High Court recently ruled against Kumari Sadhana Bera, the unmarried daughter of Krishna Pada Bera, a participant in the Quit India Movement, who sought pension benefits under the Freedom Fighters’ Pension Scheme. The court stated that the pension is a mark of honour for freedom fighters and not an unqualified right. Bera's application was denied due to significant delays; she waited 11 years to first apply for the pension after her father's death in 1996, and another 11 years to approach the court after her application was rejected in 2012. The court highlighted that Bera was regularly employed at the time of her father's death, thus not qualifying as a dependent under the scheme. The ruling reinforced that all conditions of the pension scheme must be met and that delays in application must be adequately explained. The court emphasized that while the pension scheme is benevolent, it does not imply unlimited entitlement.
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This ruling underscores the importance of adhering to application timelines for pension claims, potentially affecting other applicants under similar circumstances.
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