In a significant judicial endeavor, the Supreme Court of India expressed its determination on Thursday to rectify the disparity in pension benefits afforded to retired high court judges. The issue, highlighted during a session with a bench consisting of Justices B R Gavai, Augustine George Masih, and K Vinod Chandran, focuses on achieving pension parity among judges, irrespective of their paths to the high court bench.
The root of the disparity lies in the differing pension schemes for judges who were elevated from the district judiciary, covered under the New Pension Scheme, and those who ascended from the Bar, beneficiaries of the Old Pension Scheme. This division has led to considerable differences in pension payments, a situation the Supreme Court aims to resolve comprehensively.
“We are not just here to lay down the law but to find a real solution,” the bench conveyed during the proceedings, emphasizing their commitment to a resolution. The dialogue, infused with a sense of urgency, also saw the bench soliciting a cooperative approach from the Attorney General, R Venkataramani, who was assured by the Justices that his involvement would steer the matter toward a resolution.
The hearing, which will continue on January 28, follows previous remarks from the court in December 2024, where it described the low pension figures — as meager as Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000 for some retired high court judges — as “pitiable.” The court had then called for a “humane approach” over a strictly legal one, critiquing the stark pension range that also dipped to as low as Rs 6,000 for some.
