Bombay High Court recently delivered an important decision related to employee pension rights in India. Moreover, the case involved a retired employee whose higher pension request EPFO rejected due to missing employer records.
Court Declares Pension as a Right
Justice Amit Borkar clearly stated that pension is not a facility but a right earned through long service. Therefore, the court set aside EPFO’s decision and confirmed that missing documents cannot deny rightful benefits.
Case Background and Employee Details
The employee worked as a pharmacist at Haffkine Bio-Pharmaceutical Corporation Limited from 1987 to 2024. Additionally, his salary saw regular provident fund deductions throughout his 37-year service period.
Following the Supreme Court’s 2022 judgment, he applied for the higher pension option. However, despite fulfilling service requirements, EPFO rejected his application in March 2025.
Reason Behind EPFO Rejection
EPFO stated that the employer failed to provide key records from before 2010. Moreover, these included monthly challans and Form 6A, which the department considered necessary for processing the claim.
Therefore, authorities argued that without these documents, they could not approve the employee’s request. Consequently, the matter reached the court for resolution.
Court Questions EPFO Approach
The court observed that EPFO followed a very narrow approach while examining available information. Furthermore, the court noted that no dispute existed regarding the employee’s 37-year service or consistent contributions.
Therefore, rejecting the claim solely due to missing documents appeared unjustified in this situation.
What This Means Ahead
This ruling highlights that administrative gaps should not affect employee rights earned through years of service. Therefore, such decisions may influence similar pension cases where documentation issues create hurdles.
