Bank employees pension: SC rejects review petitions

recorder report

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed all the review petitions against its judgment on raising minimum pensions to Rs8,000 per month.

A three-member bench headed by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar heard the review petitions of the United Bank Limited, Habib Bank Limited and Allied Bank Limited and rejected the arguments after hearing them.

The apex court on February 13 last had passed the judgment and directed the three private banks to immediately raise the minimum pension to Rs8,000 per month. The payments will be prospective, i.e., from the date of the judgment.

“With immediate effect the minimum pension paid to any pensioner (including their widows, where applicable) of UBL, HBL and ABL will be Rs8,000 (rupees eight thousand) per month,” said as 31-page judgment.

During the Tuesday proceeding, the private banks submitted affidavits that they would implement the court judgment regarding raising pension to Rs8,000 per month. The court, however, held if the employees who have availed golden handshake and voluntary termination schemes and already obtained gratuity and pension, then this judgment would not apply on them.

Barrister Ali Zafar, the counsel of HBL, said he wanted to argue the review petition. However, the Chief Justice told him, “If you don’t accept the apex court’s judgment then we would summon the chief executive officers of the banks.”

The apex court’s February judgment also directed that there will be an increase of 5% in the aforesaid pension every year, effective from January 1 every year.

“The pension will be paid to all three categories of pensioners… [including] the ‘original retirees’, those whose pensions were linked to basic pay ‘frozen’ in past years, and in the case of UBL to retrenched employees including those who had served the bank for more than ten years on date of retrenchment,” the judgment said.

The verdict clarified that the pension of employees who are receiving sums in excess of Rs8,000 shall continue to receive that amount and those whose pension would fall below the minimum pension (after 5% annual increase, effective on the 1st of January) they shall be paid the minimum pension with 5% annual increase. The legal experts have appreciated the court’s efforts to enhance the minimum pension of poor retired employees of the banks.