Recovery of excess pay is prohibited; respondents may re-fix pension by excluding wrongly granted benefits.

The applicants, three retired or soon-to-be-retired employees (a Helper, an ALM, and a Turn Cock) of the Jal Shakti (PHE) Department in District Kathua, approached the Tribunal seeking the fixation of their pensionary benefits based on their last pay drawn

They further sought the release of all post-retirement dues, gratuity, and a refund of amounts already recovered from their salaries/pensions by the respondents

The dispute primarily centered on the application of SRO 59 and the legality of recovering "excess" payments made during their service

1. Whether the respondents can legally effect recoveries of excess amounts paid to employees due to wrong pay fixation after their retirement

2. Whether the respondents are entitled to re-fix the pay/pension of the applicants by excluding benefits wrongly granted under SRO 59

The Tribunal applied the legal principle as settled by the Hon’ble High Court of Jammu & Kashmir in UT of J&K & Ors. vs. Maqbool Sheikh & Ors. (WP(C) No. 936/2025, decided on 06.03.2026), which dictates that while the government may re-fix pay/pension to correct past errors, the recovery of excess amounts already paid to employees is impermissible in law

This reflects broader Indian administrative law principles protecting retired/low-earning employees from harsh recoveries of bona fide payments.

The Tribunal noted that the legal controversy regarding SRO 59 is no longer res integra (an open question)

By applying the precedent set in Maqbool Sheikh, the court reasoned that the rights of the applicants are protected against the recovery of excess payments already disbursed

The Tribunal underscored that any amount already recovered must be refunded to the employees

However, the court balanced this by affirming the respondents' "liberty" to re-calculate and re-fix the future pay or pension of the applicants if the prior benefits were indeed granted erroneously

Consequently, the respondents were directed to process the service records and Last Pay Certificates (LPC) to finalize the pension claims through the Accountant General

Held: (1) Recovery of excess amounts already paid is prohibited, and any recovered amounts must be refunded

(2) Respondents are permitted to re-fix pay/pension by excluding wrongly granted benefits

The respondents were ordered to forward the service records to the Accountant General for final settlement and release of benefits within four weeks