Ahmedabadi, Sep 20: The Gujarat High Court is hearing a case on the issue of whether the second wife of a deceased government employee can claim a family pension.
The court has directed the applicant’s lawyer to present rules and documents supporting the claim that the second wife is entitled to 50% of the family pension, even with the first wife still alive.
The deceased government employee joined the revenue department in 1971 and opted for voluntary retirement as Deputy Mamlatdar in 2006, after 33 years of service.
He was first married and had a child who tragically died in an accident. So he married again, and the new couple had a daughter.
The employee met an untimely death in a railway accident earlier this year.
Following his death, the first wife began receiving a pension from the state government.
The second wife, however, applied for the same benefit but received no response from the government.
Consequently, her daughter filed an application seeking an equal share of the monthly family pension.
The daughter’s lawyer argued in court that according to Section 91(2)(1) of the Gujarat Civil Services (pension) rules, if a deceased has multiple widows, the pension should be divided equally among them.
This provision applies to individuals from specific communities where polygamy is permitted, and the deceased was part of such a
community.
The government, however, countered that only the first wife is eligible for the pension. After listening to both parties, the High Court requested documents related to marriages and any similar past cases. The next hearing is scheduled for September 25.
