HC orders pension but with penalty

TT, Calcutta, Feb. 11: The high court today issued an order directing the school education department to disburse the retirement benefits of a headmaster but asked it to deduct Rs 1 lakh and pay that amount to a former teacher of the school who had to wait eight years for his dues because of the headmaster's negligence.

The assistant teacher, Bhabendra Nath Mondal, had retired from Mrinalnagar Higher Secondary Vidyamandir at Kakdwip in South 24-Parganas on April 30, 2007. After his retirement, the district inspector of schools had sought Mondal's service documents from Ashok Shasmal, the then headmaster of the school.

However, when Shasmal did not send the documents even in 2014, Mondal moved a petition in the high court.

The DI of South 24-Parganas informed the judge that even after repeated appeals, the headmaster did not send the service record of Mondal.

In July 2015, Justice Talukdar directed Shasmal to immediately send Mondal's documents to the DI office.

On September 30, 2015, Shasmal retired but till then, he had not carried out the order.

In October 2015, Justice Talukdar directed the DI's office to stop the process of disbursing the retirement benefits and pension to Shasmal.

The school's new headmaster sent Mondal's service records to the DI's office. In December last year, Mondal got his dues and started receiving his pension.

Today, the DI's office sought the judge's permission to release the pension and retirement benefits of Shasmal.

Justice Talukdar said in today's order: "Yes, the DI office has the liberty to disburse pension and retirement benefits of the said headmaster now. But it would have to deduct Rs 1 lakh... and pay it to Mondal, whom the headmaster had harassed for eight long years."