- 1 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:21256 WP No. 16901 of 2023 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 17TH DAY OF APRIL, 2026 BEFORE THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE S.R.KRISHNA KUMAR WRIT PETITION NO. 16901 OF 2023 (S-RES) BETWEEN: N.V. NARAYANAPPA S/O VEERAPPA, AGED ABOUT 64 YEARS, RETIRED MECHANIC GRADE-2 BESCOM, NELAMANGALA SUB DIVISION, NELAMANGALA DIVISION, R/AT BWSSB COLONY, TAVAREKERE, BANGALORE SOUTH - 560 029. …PETITIONER (BY SMT. SANGEETHA, ADVOCATE FOR SRI. SRINIVASA K, ADVOCATE) AND: 1. DIRECTOR (A AND HR) KPTCL, KAVERI BHAVANA, BANGALORE - 560 009. 2. CHIEF GENERAL MANAGER (F AND C) BESCOM, CORPORATE OFFICE, K.R. CIRCLE, BANGALORE - 560 001. 3. SUPERINTENDING ENGINEER (ELE) BESCOM, O AND M RURAL CIRCLE, TTMC BUILDING, KENGERI, BANGALORE - 560 060. 4. EXECUTIVE ENGINEER (ELE) BESCOM, O AND M NELAMANGALA DIVISION, NELAMANGALA - 562 123. …RESPONDENTS (BY SRI. VENKATESHA T.S, ADVOCATE FOR R1 TO R4) Digitally signed by SHARADAVANI B Location: High Court of Karnataka - 2 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:21256 WP No. 16901 of 2023 THIS WP IS FILED UNDER ARTICLES 226 AND 227 OF THE CONSTITUTIONOF INDIA PRAYING TO QUASHING THE IMPUGNED OFFICIAL MEMORANDUM BEARING NO. DATED 21/06/2018 ISSUED BY THE R4 VIDE ANNEXURE-C TO THE WP AND ETC., THIS PETITION, COMING ON FOR PRELIMINARY HEARING IN 'B' GROUP, THIS DAY, ORDER WAS MADE THEREIN AS UNDER: CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE S.R.KRISHNA KUMAR ORAL ORDER In this petition, petitioner seeks the following reliefs; "1. Issue a writ of certiorari quashing the impugned Official Memorandum bearing No:
ಾಯಾಹಕ ಇಂಯ/ ೆಲಮಂಗಲ ರವರ ಅಕೃತ ಾಪನ ಪತ ಸಂೆ: 1209 dated 21.06.2018, issued by the 4th respondent vide Annexure-C to the writ petition. 2. Issue a writ of mandamus directing the respondent No.4 to refund the entire amount of Rs.1,73,069/ along with interest at 6% p.a. to be effective from 01.07.2018 as per the representation of the petitioner dated 01.08.2018 vide Annexure-E to the writ petition. 3. Issue such other writ or order or direction as this Hon'ble Court may deem fit to pass under the facts and circumstances of the case to meet the ends of justice and equity.” - 3 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:21256 WP No. 16901 of 2023 2. Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and learned counsel for respondent Nos.1 to 4 and perused the materials on record. 3. A perusal of the material on record will indicate that the petitioner was appointed as Assistant Lineman and attained the age of superannuation on 01.04.2005, on which date, the basic pay of the petitioner was Rs.58,590/-. Subsequently, vide impugned Official Memorandum at Annexure - C dated 21.06.2018, the respondent purported to reduce the basic pay from Rs.58,590/- to Rs.57,200/- and recovered the excess amount paid by the respondent to the petitioner after lapse of about 13 years, which is impermissible in law as held by this Court in the case of Sri.J.Anthonyraju wherein it is held as under. "ORAL ORDER In this petition, petitioner seeks the following reliefs: “i) Issue a writ of certiorari quashing the impugned Official Memorandum bearing No:PÁ¤EA (ªÁ, PÁ & ¥Á)/ºÉÆ«/¯É/¸À¯É/¹¸À-2/2022-23/494 dated 24.04.2023, issued by the 4th respondent vide Annexure-C to the writ petition. ii) Issue a writ of mandamus directing the respondent No.4 to refund the entire amount of Rs.3,01,834/- along with interest at 6% p.a. to be effective from 01.04.2023 as per the representation of the petitioner dated 01.06.2023 vide Annexure-E to the writ petition. - 4 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:21256 WP No. 16901 of 2023 iii) Issue such other writ or order or direction as this Hon’ble Court may deem fit to pass under the facts and circumstances of the case to meet the ends of justice and equity.” 2. Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and learned counsel for the respondents and perused the material on record. 3. A perusal of the material on record will indicate that when the petitioner was working as a Senior Assistant in the respondent Nos.2 to 4 – Company, they initiated a Departmental Enquiry against the petitioner, which culminated in an order dated 13.03.2014 (Annexure-R5 along with Statement of objections) whereby respondent Nos.2 to 4 came to the conclusion that the charges levelled against the petitioner were proved and consequently withheld one annual increment payable to the petitioner. It is a matter of record and an undisputed fact that though the said order was passed as long back as on 13.03.2014, respondent Nos.2 to 4 did not withhold any annual increment payable in favour of the petitioner and continued to make payment to the petitioner till 24.03.2023 upto 9 years from the date of the said order. Meanwhile, the petitioner having retired on attaining the age of superannuation on 31.03.2023, the respondents passed the impugned order dated 24.04.2023 purporting to recover a sum of Rs.3,01,834/- from out of the retirement / pensionary benefits payable to the petitioner, who is before this Court by way of the present petition. 4. Learned counsel for the petitioner would place reliance upon the judgment of the Co-ordinate Bench of this Court at Annexure-F in the case of Rathnsingh Naik Vs. The Director (A and HR) and others – W.P.No.2448/2022 in order to contend that any recovery beyond a period of 5 years is impermissible in law. The said order reads as under: - 5 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:21256 WP No. 16901 of 2023 “The petitioner, who has retired from service with BESCOM on 30.06.2021, has called in question the Official Memorandum dated 05.07.2021 [Annexure-D]. The petitioner by the impugned Official Memorandum dated 05.07.2021 is informed that a sum of Rs.8,09,556/- would be deducted from his pensionary benefits as excess salary is paid to him for the period between 24.03.1999 and 13.05.1999 and 24.03.2002 and 30.06.2021. The petitioner’s case is that the respondents cannot deduct any amount from his pensionary benefits in view of the decision of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in State of Punjab & Ors. v. Rafiq Masih (White Washer) & Others. 2. Sri K.Srinivasa, the learned counsel for the petitioner, submits that the Hon’ble Supreme Court in the aforesaid decision has declared that the recoveries cannot be deducted from the retirement benefits of either Group - C or Group -D employee, and the petitioner, who is working as Senior Assistant with BESCOM, has retired as a Group-C employee. Sri K.Srinivasa also emphasizes that the Hon’ble Supreme Court has held that if the alleged excess payment is made over a period of five years, there cannot be any recovery. 3. Sri Shamanth Naik, the learned counsel for the respondents, submits that the petitioner, who was required to submit his documents to enable the Corporation to assess his entitlement for pension and retirement benefits, has furnished the documents, and only on scrutiny of these documents it is seen that the petitioner is paid salary at a higher scale. As such, the petitioner is issued with the Official Memorandum dated 01.07.2021 informing him that excess salary paid for over period would be deducted and the petitioner has submitted his letter dated 03.07.2021 stating that if any amount is legally due, it could be recovered from his pension. It is only consequent to such response, the impugned Official Memorandum date 05.07.2021 is issued. - 6 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:21256 WP No. 16901 of 2023 4. In rejoinder, Sri K.Srinivasa submits that on 05.07.2021 [the date of the impugned Official Memorandum], the petitioner is issued with the show cause notice as to why a sum of Rs.8,09,566/- should not be deducted. If the impugned Official Memorandum dated 05.07.2021 is issued in response to the petitioner’s response dated 03.07.2021, there would be no occasion to issue the show cause notice dated 05.07.2021. It is thus from the records shown that the petitioner is constrained to file his response on 03.07.2021, and if the constraint is established, the contention that the impugned Official Memorandum is issued based on the petitioner’s response dated 03.07.2021 is rendered untenable in law. 5. It cannot be gainsaid that with the decision of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in State of Punjab & Ors. v. Rafiq Masih (White Washer) & Others supra, there is a clear embargo on the recoveries being made from the retirement/pensionary benefits of a Group-C or Group-D employee and with the further embargo on such recovery when it is on the ground that excess payments have been made and such payments are made for more than five years before the date of order of recovery. The petitioner must succeed on the first ground, and he must also succeed on the second ground as is obvious from the impugned Official Memorandum that the recoveries are made for the alleged excess payments for two periods commencing in 1999 and 2002. 6. Further, as pointed by Sri K.Srinivasa that the arbitrariness in issuing the impugned Official Memorandum dated 05.07.2021 stands out inasmuch as on the date of the Official Memorandum, show cause notice is also issued calling upon the petitioner to show why there must not be deduction and this is notwithstanding the respondent’s case that the petitioner had filed response agreeing to deduct the amount on 03.07.2021. Furthermore, the petitioner’s response dated 03.07.2021 does not enable the respondent to - 7 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:21256 WP No. 16901 of 2023 avoid the embargo as aforesaid because the petitioner has only said that the amount that could be deducted in law could be deducted from his retirement benefits. For the foregoing, the following: ORDER [a] The petition is allowed, and the impugned Official Memorandum dated 05.07.2021 is quashed. Consequentially, the respondents are directed to repay any amount that may be deducted from the petitioner’s pension along with interest at the rate of 6% per annum. [b] The petitioner to avail the benefit of such refund with interest is reserved liberty to file a representation with the fourth respondent within two [2] weeks from the date of receipt of a certified copy of this order and if such representation is filed, the fourth respondent shall pass suitable orders within a period of six weeks there from to enable refund as aforesaid.” 5. It is contended that as held by this Court in the aforesaid judgment, the impugned order passed purporting to recover the aforesaid amount from the petitioner after more than 9 years deserves to be quashed. 6. Per contra, learned counsel for the respondents would reiterate the various contentions urged in the statement of objections and submits that since the aforesaid amount was paid by mistake by the respondent Nos.2 to 4 to the petitioner, the respondent Nos.2 to 4 was fully justified in seeking to recover the said amount having regard to the order dated 13.03.2014, which was passed by respondent Nos.2 to 4 and as such, there is no merit in the petition and the same is liable to be dismissed. 7. As rightly contented by learned counsel for the petitioner, in Ratansingh Naik's case supra, this Court has reiterated the well settled position of law that retirement / pensionary benefits payable to a Group ‘C’ employee is not recoverable after the maximum / upper - 8 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:21256 WP No. 16901 of 2023 limit of five years from when the said excess payment was made i.e., from the date on which the aforesaid order dated 13.03.2014 at Annexure R5 was passed and the respondents woke up and purported to recover the said amount after more than 9 years from the date of the said order vide impugned order at Annexure – C dated 24.04.2023. 8. In the instant case, it is an undisputed fact that the order withholding one annual increment payable to the petitioner was passed as long back as on 13.03.2014, the impugned order was passed after more than 9 years thereafter is clearly illegal, arbitrary and contrary to law and the principles laid down by this Court in Ratansingh Naik's case supra, warranting interference by this Court in the present petition. 9. In the result, I pass the following: ORDER (i) The petition is hereby allowed. (ii) The impugned Official Memorandum at Annexure – C dated 24.04.2023 issued by respondent No.4 is hereby quashed. (iii) Respondent No.4 is directed to refund the entire amount of Rs.3,01,834/- along with 6% interest per annum within a period of three months on the date of receipt of a copy of this order." 4. As can be seen from the aforesaid judgment, the retirement/pensionary benefits payable to the petitioner is not recoverable after the maximum/upper limit of 5 years from the date of excess payment and the petitioner having attained the age of superannuation in 2005, the impugned Official Memorandum dated - 9 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:21256 WP No. 16901 of 2023 21.06.2018 after more than 13 years was clearly contrary to the principles laid down in the aforesaid judgment and barred by limitation, delay and laches warranting interference by this Court in the present petition. 5. In the result, I pass the following:- ORDER (i) Petition is hereby allowed. (ii) The impugned Official Memorandum dated 21.06.2018 issued by respondent No.4 at Annexure - C is hereby quashed. (iii) The respondents are directed to refund the entire amount recovered from the petitioner together with interest at 6% per annum within a period of 3 months from the date of receipt of copy of this Order. Sd/- (S.R.KRISHNA KUMAR) JUDGE BH List No.: 1 Sl No.: 22