Accounts Dept Has No Expertise To Sit Over Medical Board's View: Rajasthan HC Upholds Order Granting Disability Pension To Ex-Army Personnel

The Rajasthan High Court upheld Armed Forces Tribunal's order which granted benefit of 'disability element of disability pension' to a defence personnel, holding that Chief Controller of Defence Accounts (Pension) didn't have expertise to question correctness of personnel's assessment conducted by Re-survey Medical Board (RSMB).

The division bench of Chief Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava and Justice Anand Sharma was hearing the Union's petition challenging the Tribunal's order which had directed to grant benefit of disability element of disability pension to the respondent with effect from 1998, for life.

It was argued on behalf of the State that this order passed by the Tribunal was laced with perversity and excess of jurisdiction because the examination held in 1998 was re-assessed in 2003 in which the disability was assessed to be less than 20%.

Hence, it was put forth, that in light of the Apex Court ruling in Union of India and Ors. v Wing Commander S.P Rathore, once the disability was reduced to 20%, disability pension was not admissible under Regulation 37(a) of the Defence Service Regulations Pensions Regulations for the Air Force, 1961, which was pari materia to para 186(2) of the Pension Regulation for the Army under similar rules of Army, 1961.

The bench noted that it appeared that the RSMB examined the respondent on 12.03.1998 and assessed the disability of the respondent at 20% for life. The MA(P) at the PCDA(P) (Principal Controller of Defence Accounts) however, reassessed the same at less than 20% i.e. 11 to 14% for five years w.e.f. 25.03.1998 to 11.03.2003.

After hearing the contentions, the Court rejected the argument presented by the State and referred to the Tribunal's reliance on another Supreme Court ruling in the case of Ex Sapper Mohinder Singh v UOI based on which the Tribunal held that accounts department did not have authority to re-assess the opinion made by the Medical Board regarding the extent of disability.

In this background, it was held that, “PCDA(P) reassessment made on 05.04.2003, in our opinion, was not permissible in law because the Chief Controller of Defence Accounts (Pension) did not have any expertise to sit over the correctness of opinion of the Medical Board held on 12.03.1998.”

The Court ruled that the action of reducing and declaring the disability to less than 20% in itself was contrary to law, and hence, there was no error in the Tribunal's order.

Accordingly, the petition was dismissed.

Title: Union of India & Ors. v No. 2648428 Ex-Hav and Hony Nb/sub Raghbir Singh

Citation: 2025 LiveLaw (Raj) 151

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