High Court Grants Extraordinary Pension to BSF Constable’s Widow: Heart Attack on Duty Recognized as Service-Related
In a landmark judgment, the High Court of Punjab and Haryana has set aside an earlier decision that denied extraordinary family pension to Raj Bala, the widow of a Border Security Force (BSF) Head Constable who died of a heart attack while on duty.
The High Court’s ruling emphasized, “If the person is on duty and in the process suffers a heart attack and such condition of heart has not been traced to a natural cause earlier, then such an eventuality cannot be stated to be not on account of Government service.”
Head Constable Joginder Singh, who was enrolled in the BSF in 1985, passed away in 2006 during a patrol on the Indo-Bangladesh Border. Despite the absence of any previous heart disease, his wife’s claim for an extraordinary family pension was initially rejected on the basis that a heart attack did not fall within the purview of notified diseases eligible for such pensions.
The Court’s decision on November 3, 2023, cited two precedents where it was held that death due to a heart attack while on duty warrants the grant of extraordinary pension. The bench referred to the similar views expressed in earlier rulings from both the Delhi High Court and the Punjab & Haryana High Court.
Justice Jagmohan Bansal, while delivering the judgment, held that the case of the petitioner is squarely covered by the cited judgments and pointed out the respondents’ failure to present any contradictory law or view.
The Court directed the concerned authorities to release the extraordinary pension to Raj Bala within six months. The decision has been welcomed as a significant move to acknowledge the stressful conditions under which security personnel operate and the consequent health risks they face.
The judgment concluded with a strong affirmation that, “Even if there was a prior condition of heart and the same was aggravated due to his being on duty, even then the incumbent would have been entitled to extraordinary pension.”
This judgment sets a precedent that ensures the welfare of the families of service personnel who lose their lives in the line of duty, potentially due to the strenuous nature of their service.
Date of Decision: 03.11.2023
Raj Bala VS Union of India and others
