Allowance for widow of sacked cop

The Delhi High Court has directed the Delhi Police to give an allowance on compassionate grounds to the widow of an ailing constable who was dismissed from service before his death in 2003.

The Delhi High Court has directed the Delhi Police to give an allowance on compassionate grounds to the widow of an ailing constable who was dismissed from service before his death in 2003.

HT Image

Constable Nidhi Kumar was sacked from service in 2001 on account of long absence from office without authorised leave. He was forced to remain away from office due to illness.

The court was hearing a petition filed by Delhi Police challenging the Central Administrative Tribunal's 2005 direction to pay the allowance to the constable's widow Anju. A division bench of Justice Anil Kumar and Justice Veena Birbal said: "Compassionate allowance could not be denied to the widow...”

"There is no perversity or such illegality in the order of the tribunal which would require any interference by this court," the judges said. "The petitioner is directed to accord the compassionate allowance to the legal representative (of the constable) with all consequential benefits," said the tribunal earlier.

"The facts leading to the dismissal from the service rather support the plea of the respondent that her husband" was not punished for misconduct or dishonesty, the court said.

"Before dismissal from the service on account of unauthorised absence on account of his illness he had rendered 12 years of service was also not taken into consideration," said the court, while rejecting the Delhi Police plea earlier this week.