21-08-2026 ct no. 13 Sl. 12 pk M.A.T. 1455 of 2025 With CAN 1 of 2025 Mriganka Mandal -Versus- The State of West Bengal & Ors. Mr. Ekramul Bari, Sk. Imtiaj Uddin. …for the appellant. 1. The appeal is directed against an order dated 25th August, 2025 passed by a Single Bench of this Court in WPA 16136 of 2025. 2. The grievance of the writ petitioner before the Single Bench was that while processing pension papers of the writ petitioner, two increments were held to have been wrongly paid to him. Recovery of excess payment was ordered by the District Inspector of Schools (S.E.), South 24-Parganas whereupon the last draw pay was to be arrived at. The pension payment order was to be issued to the petitioner only after such recovery. 3. It is now well-settled that any excess drawn by an employee under the State cannot be recovered at the time of retirement immediately, prior thereto or thereafter. 4. The aforesaid proposition flows from a dicta of the Supreme Court in the case of State of Punjab & Ors. Vs. Rafiq Masih (White Washer) reported in 2015 (4) SCC 334. The said proposition of law was reconsidered and approved with some modifications by the Supreme Court in the case of Thomas Daniel Vs State of Kerala reported in 2022 SCC Online (SC) 536. 5. In the light of the above, this Court directs that no recovery shall be made from the terminal benefit of the petitioner and the same shall be calculated on the basis of the last drawn pay as Headmaster of Hiranmoypur Joygopalpur Netaji Vidyapith. Let the terminal benefits to the appellant be released forthwith. 6. The respondents shall, however, be entitled to issue pension payment order on any revised scale of pay and release pension to the petitioner as expeditiously as possible. Such PPO shall be issued within a period of two weeks from the date of communication of a copy of this order and pension shall be commenced. 2 7. All questions regarding the calculation in the pension payment order and the last draw pay of the petitioner by the respondents for calculation of pension are kept open for the petitioner to agitate in accordance with law. 8. With the aforesaid directions, MAT 1455 of 2025 shall stand disposed of. 9. Consequently, CAN 1 of 2025 shall also stand disposed of. 10. There shall be no order as to costs. 11. Urgent certified copies of this order, if applied for, be supplied to the parties upon compliance with all requisite formalities. (Rajasekhar Mantha, J.) (Anuj Singh, J.) 3