Legally wedded wife and children of void marriages are entitled to equal shares of family pension.

Late Shri Ritesh Maity, an employee of Eastern Railway, died in harness on February 20, 2018.

The applicant, Smt. Jhuma Maity, claiming to be his wife, sought retiral benefits and family pension.

The respondent authority, receiving rival claims from Smt. Suparna Maity and Smt. Amrita Maity, directed the applicant to obtain a succession certificate.

Following a previous tribunal order, the share of the applicant’s son, Rittik Maity, was released.

On June 22, 2023, the applicant obtained a succession certificate from the District Delegate Civil Judge, Alipore.

The certificate established that while Amrita Maity was not a legally wedded wife, her minor daughter, Barsha Maity, was a legal heir of the deceased.

Consequently, the respondents paid PF, GIS, and 1/3 DCRG to the applicant but limited her family pension to a 50% share, reserving the remainder for the minor daughter, Barsha Maity.

1. Whether the applicant, as the legally wedded wife, is entitled to the entirety of the family pension to the exclusion of children from a void marriage.

2. Whether children born out of a void or voidable marriage are entitled to a share of the family pension alongside the legally wedded wife under the CCS (Pension) Rules.

The court applied the Ministry of Personnel, P.G. Pensions (Department of Pension Pensioners’ Welfare) Office Memorandum dated November 27, 2012, which supersedes previous circulars to allow children of illegally wedded wives a share in the family pension alongside the legally wedded wife.

It further relied on Rule 50(9)(k) of the CCS (Pension) Rules, 2021, which mandates that children from void or voidable marriages are entitled to the share of family pension that their mother would have received had the marriage been valid.

The Tribunal examined the succession certificate which explicitly noted that while Smt. Amrita Maity was not the legally married wife, her daughter, Barsha Maity, was entitled to benefits from the deceased’s estate.

The Tribunal reasoned that the statutory framework under Rule 50(9)(k) of the CCS (Pension) Rules, 2021, and the clarifying OM dated November 27, 2012, created a mandatory entitlement for children of void marriages to receive a proportionate share of the family pension.

Since there were two eligible categories of claimants—the legally wedded wife (the applicant) and the child of a void marriage (Barsha Maity)—the law requires the pension to be divided equally.

The Tribunal found the Railway administration's decision to apportion the pension at 50% each to be in strict accordance with these rules.

The Original Application was disposed of with a direction to the respondents to sanction the 50% share of the family pension to the applicant within four weeks of receiving the order.

The remaining 50% is to be paid to Barsha Maity upon her attaining the age of majority.

No costs were awarded.