The Supreme Court has recently stayed on a Delhi High Court order, which directed the application of the Old Pension Scheme to the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF).
The bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Bela M Trivedi issued a notice on the Central government’s appeal and scheduled the case for further consideration in February 2024.
The Supreme Court clarified that government employees who joined the service based on recruitment notices issued before 2004 can avail the OPS, as per a recent office memorandum.
Previously, the Delhi High Court held that CAPF, including forces like the Central Reserve Police Force, Shashtra Seema Bal (BSF), Border Security Force (BSF), and Indo-Tibetan Border Police, are entitled to OPS benefits similar to the Indian Army, Navy, and Air Force.
A division bench of Justices Suresh Kumar Kait and Neena Bansal Krishna set aside government orders and officer memorandums that denied OPS benefits to paramilitary personnel.
The petitioners argued that the government’s notification of December 22, 2003, introducing the New Contributory Pension Scheme (NPS), and an office memorandum of February 17, 2020, imposed a bar on implementing the NPS for CAPF personnel categorized as ‘Armed Forces’ exempted from the NPS.
They contended that OPS should apply to them instead of NPS.
The High Court highlighted a circular dated August 6, 2004, from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), which declared that the Central Forces under MHA’s administrative control are armed forces of the Union.
The High Court opined that the exclusion of Armed Forces from the notification dated December 22, 2003, is an undisputed position based on the circular.
