Divorced status must exist at the time of pensioner's death for family pension entitlement.

Rash Bihari Paul, a laborer at the Agartala Municipal Corporation (AMC), retired on 01.10.2004 and received a pension until his death on 02.12.2018

The petitioner, his daughter, had resided with him for over 40 years after her husband deserted her shortly after their marriage

Although separated, the petitioner remained legally married at the time of her father’s death

She eventually obtained a decree of divorce via a compromise petition on 04.10.2021

Subsequently, on 23.02.2022, she applied for a family pension under the Tripura State Civil Services (Revised Pension) Rules, 2017

The AMC rejected her prayer on 04.10.2024, arguing that since the divorce occurred after the death of the original pensioner, she did not qualify as a "divorcee daughter" for the purpose of the pension

1. Whether a daughter who institutes divorce proceedings and obtains a decree of divorce after the death of her pensioner father is entitled to claim a family pension under the Revised Pension Rules, 2017

Rule 8 of the Tripura State Civil Services (Revised Pension) Rules, 2017, which provides that family pension is admissible to a non-earning "divorcee daughter" until the restoration of her conjugal life, subject to an income ceiling

Principles of statutory interpretation from Union of India v. Deoki Nandan Aggarwal (1992), which held that courts cannot enlarge the scope of legislation or rewrite statutes when the language is plain and unambiguous

Central Government Office Memoranda (dated 11.09.2013 and 19.07.2017) as persuasive tools for interpretation, which specify that a daughter must fulfill eligibility conditions (such as being widowed or divorced) at the time of the pensioner's death or, at minimum, have initiated divorce proceedings during the pensioner's lifetime

The court observed that the right to receive a family pension accrues immediately upon the death of the pensioner or their spouse.

For a daughter to be eligible, she must possess the status of a "divorcee daughter" on that specific date.

At the time of Rash Bihari Paul’s death in 2018, the petitioner’s legal status was that of a "married daughter separated from her husband," a category not covered under the 2017 Rules.

Although she was financially dependent on her father, the court held that dependency alone does not override the statutory requirement of legal status.

The court distinguished the petitioner’s case from scenarios where divorce proceedings were initiated before the death of the parent, noting that her suit was filed only in 2021.

Invoking the Deoki Nandan Aggarwal precedent, the court concluded it lacked the authority to "rewrite" the rules to include daughters divorced post-death, as doing so would exceed the judicial mandate.

The court clarified that the Revised Pension Rules, 2017 do not cover such cases and the judiciary cannot extend the benefit through interpretation where the rule is specific.

Consequently, the writ petition was dismissed.