The Principal Bench of the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT), New Delhi, has asked the Punjab government to respond on a plea filed by Shabri Prasad , daughter of Punjab cadre IPS officer Late R C Prasad, seeking payment of statutory interest on her delayed pension arrears .
Shabri, an unmarried daughter of the 1976-batch Punjab cadre IPS officer who died in service in December 2003, has been a legitimate recipient of family pension under Rule 54 of the Central Civil Services (Pension) Rules, 1972. However, her pension was abruptly discontinued when she turned 25 years old, despite government orders clarifying that unmarried daughters above that age are eligible for continued family pension if they remain unmarried and dependent.
Her pension was restored only in 2020 after she pursued repeated representations, following which she received arrears aggregating to Rs 43.61 lakh in three installments. However, the arrears were paid without the statutory interest mandated under Rule 65(2) of the CCS (Pension) Rules, 1972, which requires payment of interest in cases of delay attributable to administrative lapses.
The unpaid interest on delayed payments has been tentatively calculated at around Rs 43.21 lakh at 9 per cent per annum.
In her plea before the principal bench of CAT, she has submitted that despite several representations — including letters dated September 2024 and emails to senior Punjab officials — no action was taken to release the interest component. The denial of statutory interest is in violation of Rule 65(2) of the CCS (Pension) Rules, 1972, she has submitted before the tribunal.
The matter was last heard on July 14, 2025, when the Tribunal fixed it for August 27 asking the Punjab government to respond.
For Shabri Prasad, the matter is not merely financial but also symbolic of a long struggle against bureaucratic indifference. “My father served the Punjab Police with dedication. After his death, I have had to fight every step of the way to secure what is rightfully mine,” she has stated in her representations.
Shabri, an unmarried daughter of the 1976-batch Punjab cadre IPS officer who died in service in December 2003, has been a legitimate recipient of family pension under Rule 54 of the Central Civil Services (Pension) Rules, 1972. However, her pension was abruptly discontinued when she turned 25 years old, despite government orders clarifying that unmarried daughters above that age are eligible for continued family pension if they remain unmarried and dependent.
Her pension was restored only in 2020 after she pursued repeated representations, following which she received arrears aggregating to Rs 43.61 lakh in three installments. However, the arrears were paid without the statutory interest mandated under Rule 65(2) of the CCS (Pension) Rules, 1972, which requires payment of interest in cases of delay attributable to administrative lapses.
The unpaid interest on delayed payments has been tentatively calculated at around Rs 43.21 lakh at 9 per cent per annum.
In her plea before the principal bench of CAT, she has submitted that despite several representations — including letters dated September 2024 and emails to senior Punjab officials — no action was taken to release the interest component. The denial of statutory interest is in violation of Rule 65(2) of the CCS (Pension) Rules, 1972, she has submitted before the tribunal.
The matter was last heard on July 14, 2025, when the Tribunal fixed it for August 27 asking the Punjab government to respond.
For Shabri Prasad, the matter is not merely financial but also symbolic of a long struggle against bureaucratic indifference. “My father served the Punjab Police with dedication. After his death, I have had to fight every step of the way to secure what is rightfully mine,” she has stated in her representations.
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