Legal Analysis: Bhikhani Devi and Others v. Union of India and Others

Citation: 2026 INSC 612

Court: Supreme Court of India

Bench: A Division Bench comprising Justice Sanjay Karol and Justice Augustine George Masih

Date of Decision: June 1, 2026

Nature of Judgment: Civil Appeal arising out of SLP (C) Nos. 28802-28804 of 2019 against the judgment of the High Court of Judicature at Patna dated 14.10.2019.

Synopsis of the Judgment

The appellants were either former employees or legal representatives of employees who had rendered long service as casual labourers (Night Guards) under the Department of Posts. They were conferred temporary status under the Casual Labourers (Grant of Temporary Status and Regularisation) Scheme, 1991, and after three years of continuous service were treated at par with temporary Group 'D' employees, entitling them to benefits admissible to such employees. However, they were never formally regularised. Upon superannuation, they claimed pensionary benefits, which were denied on the ground that regularisation was a prerequisite. The Central Administrative Tribunal allowed their claims, but the High Court reversed, holding that in the absence of regularisation, no pension could be granted. The Supreme Court allowed the appeals, holding that: (i) upon completion of three years of service under temporary status, casual labourers become entitled to all benefits admissible to temporary Group 'D' employees, including pensionary benefits under Rule 10(1-B) of the CCS (Temporary Service) Rules, 1965 read with CCS (Pension) Rules, 1972; (ii) regularisation is not a precondition; Clause 6 of the Scheme (counting 50% of temporary status service after regularisation) provides an additional benefit, not the sole source of pensionary entitlement; (iii) pension is a constitutional right in the nature of property under Article 300A; (iv) the claim for pension is a continuing cause of action, though arrears were restricted to three years and two months prior to filing of the original applications.

1. Basic Information of the Judgment

Case Title: Bhikhani Devi and Others v. Union of India and Others

Citation: 2026 INSC 612

Civil Appeal Nos.: Arising out of SLP (C) Nos. 28802-28804 of 2019

Bench: Justice Sanjay Karol and Justice Augustine George Masih

Date of Decision: June 1, 2026

Court: Supreme Court of India (Civil Appellate Jurisdiction)

Impugned Order: Judgments and final orders dated 14.10.2019 of the High Court of Judicature at Patna in Civil W.P. Case No. 15420 of 2019, Civil W.P. Case No. 11564 of 2019 and Civil W.P. Case No. 13980 of 2019.

2. Legal Framework

Major Laws and Provisions Involved

• Constitution of India, 1950 – Article 14 (equality), Article 38, 39, 43 (Directive Principles – social and economic justice, fair conditions of work), Article 300A (right to property – pension as property).

• Central Civil Services (Pension) Rules, 1972 – Governing pensionary benefits for Central Government employees.

• Central Civil Services (Temporary Service) Rules, 1965 – Rule 10(1-B) (temporary Government servant retiring on superannuation after not less than 10 years service is entitled to superannuation pension and retirement gratuity, and family pension on death).

• Casual Labourers (Grant of Temporary Status and Regularisation) Scheme, 1991 – Clauses 1 to 17 (conferment of temporary status, pay parity, leave, counting of service for retirement benefits after regularisation, treatment at par with temporary Group 'D' employees after three years, age relaxation, bar on open market recruitment).

Key Precedents Cited and Applied

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