The Supreme Court has ruled that a liberal and beneficial approach must be adopted when evaluating claims for disability pension by armed forces personnel, especially in cases involving mental health conditions such as Schizophrenia.
A bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and N Kotiswar Singh, in a judgment dated May 7, granted disability pension to an army man discharged from service on medical grounds. The court criticised the lack of reasons in the Medical Board’s opinion, calling it a decisive and necessary factor in pension decisions.
“If the serviceman is discharged from service or denied the disability pension on the basis of a medical opinion which is devoid of reasons, it would strike at the root of the action taken by the authority,” the bench observed.
The appellant, enrolled in the Indian Army as a sepoy in November 1988, was discharged after over nine years of service following a diagnosis of Schizophrenia. His medical discharge in May 1998 was based on the Invalidating Medical Board’s report, which held that the condition was constitutional in nature and not attributable to or aggravated by military service.
Challenging the Armed Forces Tribunal’s decision that denied him pension, the army man argued that the Medical Board failed to explain its conclusions. The top court concurred, stating that the report lacked the reasoning required under the rules.
The apex court emphasised that provisions for disability pension are inherently beneficial and intended to support soldiers who serve the nation under challenging circumstances. A liberal interpretation, it held, was essential, particularly in cases where mental illness makes it difficult for soldiers to prove service connection.
“In cases where the serviceman himself has not applied for discharge but has been discharged by the authority, the onus of proving the disability and the grounds for denying the pension would lie heavily on the authority,” the court said.
The judges noted that after nearly 27 years, it would not be just to remit the matter back to the Medical Board for reconsideration. Instead, they upheld the medical discharge but directed authorities to grant the petitioner disability pension with all applicable benefits.
However, the court limited the arrears to the last three years, denying retrospective pension for the entire period since discharge.
