A widow has won a seven-year battle with the Tamil Nadu Electricity Board (TNEB) with the Madras high court directing the board to pay family pension to her within eight weeks with arrears from April 18, 2005.
Petitioner P. Mohanambal’s husband C. Parasuraman was employed as foreman-grade I in TNEB. He reached the age of superannuation on July 31, 1994, and died on April 18, 2005, following which Mohanambal claimed family pension.
However, the board did not grant family pension to her on the ground that she was not the legally wedded wife as she married Parasuraman while his first wife was still alive.
Mohanambal then moved a civil court and got a decree that she was the legally wedded wife of Parasurman. She then sent a representation to the board but no orders were passed.
The board stood firm and said that in Parasuraman’s service register only his first wife was named as nominee and not the petitioner.
Justice D. Hariparanthaman said the petitioner’s husband married one Devaki, who died on December 25, 1982. On her demise, Parasuraman married the petitioner, Devaki’s sister on January 22, 1983.
However, the service register of Parasuraman was not amended to show the petitioner as his legally wedded wife. Parasuraman also had three children with the petitioner.
“In these circumstances, particularly, because of the decree granted by the civil court, the petitioner is entitled to get family pension,” the judge said.